2015 Agenda

Workshop:
Key Indicators That It’s The Right Time to Look For A Strategic Partner

For an emerging company, it is often challenging to know when it is time to start looking for a strategic partner. There are many factors to consider – stage of development of a lead asset, intellectual property, management experience, corporate strategy and target market among them. Partnering your assets too soon is like leaving money on the table, but waiting too long can hinder your ability to meet key milestones. This panel will discuss how you will know when it’s the right time to come to the table.

Moderator: Lesley Stolz, PhD, Transactions Team, California Innovation Center, Johnson & Johnson Innovation

• Nagesh Mahanthappa, PhD, MBA, CEO & President, Scholar Rock
• Bill Newell, CEO, Sutro Biopharma, Inc.
• Ronit Phail, Senior Director, Search & Evaluation, Corporate Business Development, Eli Lilly and Company
• Amy Schulman, Venture Partner, Polaris Partners

Workshop:
Growing Your Company: Assembling the External Team That Will Take You Forward

There comes a time when management of an emerging life science company needs to reach beyond their internal team and build their external team to continue their progress toward getting an asset approved. From financial advisers to regulatory consultants, legal advisors and communications specialists, assembling the right team can be daunting. This panel will cover some of the basics about identifying when and which external advisors you need and how you should identify who will be the right fit.

Moderator: Claudia Hirawat, President, PTC Therapeutics, Inc. (retired)

• Laurence Blumberg MD, President and Chief Executive Officer, Syntimmune Inc
• Peter DeLuca, Partner, Carter, DeLuca, Farrell & Schmidt, LLP
• Kristen C. Kosofsky, enior Managing Director for Life Sciences, Hercules Technology Growth Capital
• Steven Kreit, Partner, EisnerAmper
• Jules T. Mitchel, MBA, PhD, President, Target Health, Inc.

Workshop:
Contracts Are Forever: Positioning Your Assets

You’ve finally got the right partner, the right development commitment and the right terms. Negotiating the nitty-gritty of a contract may seem like an after-thought. But the small details in a contract can have big effects down the line. This panel will cover how to position your asset in a contract as well as the road-bumps and land-mines that have tripped up other companies that you need to be aware of so you won’t regret the contract in the morning.

Moderator: Brian P. O’Shaughnessy, Shareholder, RatnerPrestia, and Public Policy & Regional Vice President, Licensing Executives Society (LES)

• Vincent Andrews, Associate General Counsel, Eisai, Inc.
• Pamela R. Demain, Executive Director, Transactions, Business Development & Licensing, Merck & Co., Inc.­­­
• Ann Kraft, Executive Director, Licensing & Business Development, Purdue Pharma LP
• Eric Victory, Vice President & Head for Cardiovascular & Metabolic Disease, Partnering & Strategy, MedImmune

Workshop:
IP – A Pillar of Valuation

When it comes to determining value of an asset, the strength of the intellectual property that backs it up is one of the most important considerations. This workshop will discuss key issues about how the state of the underlying IP drives value.

Moderator: Deborah A. Somerville, Partner, Kenyon & Kenyon LLP

• Kathleen A. Denis, PhD, Associate Vice President, Technology Transfer, The Rockefeller University
• Thomas Gallagher, Senior Vice President, Intellectual Property, Kadmon Corporation
• A. Antony Pfeffer, Partner, Kenyon & Kenyon
• Lesley Stolz, PhD, Transactions Team, California Innovation Center, Johnson & Johnson Innovation

Workshop:
Communications: Why Getting Your Elevator Pitch Right Is So Important, Yet So Difficult

It’s obvious to you why your technology and/or your company deserves funding, but it’s not obvious to everyone else. This workshop will discuss how best to translate your years of work into a ten-second elevator pitch that will impress investors. Getting your story down to a compelling pitch is one of the most difficult tasks that a management team has to undertake and it is often overlooked. This panel will discuss how to express your story and winnow it down to effectively communicate your company value.

Moderator: Gregory Q. Tiberend, President & CEO, Tiberend Strategic Advisors, Inc.

• Kate de Santis, Vice President of Investor Relations, Iroko Pharmaceuticals, LLC
• Anna Kazanchyan, MD, Senior Vice President, Business Development, Ovid Therapeutics Inc.
• Felicia Vonella, Director, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications, Acorda Therapeutics