I am a purpose-driven biotechnology leader with over a decade of cross-functional experience in academic and industrial innovation and executive strategy. At EV Biotech, a start-up I co-founded, I moved from Head of Technology to CEO, guiding a multidisciplinary and strongly multicultural team through rapid growth and strategic restructuring in a challenging market environment, and all the way towards the company's closing.
As a people-centred leader, I have seen the value of empowering team members, whilst ensuring alignment across experts from business, engineering, and scientific backgrounds. I have experienced first-hand the incredible value the team’s diversity brings to innovation. However, since there are no clear guidelines on how to best support diverse talent, I was often left with a (well-intended) trial-and-error approach to discover what works best. I failed a lot, and I learned a lot. My current approach blends empathy with candour: I care deeply about people, but I am not afraid to ask the difficult questions when they are needed for growth. But I believe it is still far from perfect in terms of really supporting and unlocking the value of the diverse talent. And this is why I am looking towards supporting the experts in my session in finding the best practices for ensuring the divergent team members can thrive in our work environments.