RETURN ON SCIENCE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- General Manager Marketing and Partnerships at Scion
I'm passionate about our opportunity to create beneficial change delivering real sustainable solutions today, what is needed is courage and leadership.
Job Titles:
- Undergraduate Student / University of Auckland
I am currently studying towards a conjoint degree in science and commerce with majors in biology, marine science, marketing and information systems. As my degree suggests, I have an extremely broad range of interests, though the unifying factor is my passion for developing new technology to feed the coming generations and I intend to continue my studies into post-grad in either plant biotechnology or aquaculture. I have been involved with a number of start up projects in the past where my key role generally boils down to market analysis and validation, which I have loved getting involved with. I am currently working on a personal project to develop a novel sensor to monitor bee hive health.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director, Texas a & M Technology Commercialization at Texas a & M University
Brian is a tech entrepreneur with over 25 years in product design and commercialisation. He started his career with large global corporates (Nokia-UK, Analog Devices-USA) then founded and ran Zephyr Technology Corp a US based medical device company for 14 years, raising capital in the US then successfully exiting to Covidien (now Medtronic). He has 22 patents in silicon chip design and physiological monitoring. He is now involved with various projects and on several boards..
Cheryl is currently in her undergraduate degree in Engineering (specialising in Mechatronics). Amongst her studies, she has participated in numerous competitions such as the ZOME competition and the Lightlane competition. She has been a member of University of Auckland's FSAE team for the last two years, and enjoys problem solving and optimising solutions. She also enjoys learning about challenging new ideas and has a deep interest in the commercialisation process.
Whilst currently unsure of the field she would further specialise in, she aims to deepen her studies after her undergraduate degree and potentially develop a product for commercialisation.
Job Titles:
- Chairman and CTO Cirrus Materials Science
• Technical expert in multiple fields with emphasis on telecommunications, robotics and nanotechnology
Job Titles:
- Upstream Medical Technologies - Chair
Colin is actively involved with investment, development and commercial implementation of novel life sciences technology. Following 10 years in veterinary clinical practice he held a number of senior executive roles in the primary, secondary and tertiary health care sectors and was a founding partner in health consulting and investment banking services firm Medicus Capital. Relevant roles have included GM Clinical Support Services Health Waikato, CEO of Integrated Care IT company HSAGlobal, CEO of Otago Innovation, the commercialisation arm of the University of Otago and Executive Director- Group Strategy of a healthcare REIT.
Colin chairs the Boards of Tiro Medical,Upstream Medical Technologies and CertusBio. He is a director of MARS Bioimaging, the NZ Institute for Plant and Food Research and The NZ institute for Minerals to Materials Research.
He is a graduate of The University of Auckland Business School, an SEP alumnus of the Stanford University Graduate School of Business and a Chartered Fellow of the NZ Institute of Directors.
Colin Harvey is recognised for making a major contributions to the New Zealand agricultural industry. He built the animal health company Ancare. It had significant market share across several animal health categories in the face of strong competition. The trading assets of Ancare were sold to Merial in 2007 and in 2014 Merial acquired the remaining R&D assets of Ancare which had been operated by Colin as a separate development company
From a family of dairy farmers in Taranaki Colin graduated with a Bachelor of Agricultural Science from Massey University and a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Auckland.
Prior to setting up Ancare he worked in a range of roles including marketing and general management with Coopers Wellcome in New Zealand and Australia.
Colin has contributed significantly to industry affairs and in 2008 was made an Officer of NZ Order of Merit and in 2009 a member North Shore Enterprise Hall of Fame. In 1988 he founded the Animal Remedy and Plant Protectant Association and, through chairing this, contributed to the formation of the new Hazardous Substances Act and the Agricultural Compounds and Veterinary Medicines Act.
He farms Lake McKay Station in Wanaka ( 11,000 su) and is also an active investor in a number of technology investments. He also Chairs the Hobbiton theme set , Country TV Ltd ,Mastaplex Ltd and is a Director of a number of property and investment companies. He operates a consultancy ANIDEA Ltd.
Colin is a Council Member of Massey University.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director and CEO at MTPConnect
David Hudson has extensive experience in Australian agriculture, including a 23 year career with Monsanto. David was actively involved in leading Monsanto's efforts to develop conservation tillage and the introduction of Roundup Ready® canola and Ingard® (Bt) Cotton into Australia. More recently he was responsible for gaining regulatory approval for the first GM industrial crop (Super High Oleic Safflower) which will generate industrial grade oil for the oleo-chemical industry.
Since 2005 David has provided consulting services to clients in Australia and globally via his company SGA Solutions in the fields of seed, grain and agbiotech. David's expertise has been sought by clients to assist in the development of strategies and business plans for the introduction of a range of innovative technologies applicable to pastures, grains, horticulture, sugar, cotton, livestock and the seafood industry. On behalf of clients David has successfully participated in negotiating a number of R & D collaboration and commercialization agreements with leading multinational agbiotech companies. For three years David was CEO of Leaf Energy an agbiotech company which focuses on the development of plant based proteins and biofuel production in sugar cane.
David has established with a colleague a new company PTM Solutions which is focused on facilitating access to the infrastructure (e.g. regulatory, laboratory, glasshouse and field trials) required to progress agbiotech technologies along the pathway to market.
David was formerly chair of the AusBiotech Ag and Food Tech committee and a member of the Agricultural Biotechnology Council of Australia, Grain Trade Australia Market Access Committee and the Australian Seed Federation Plant Breeders and Marketers Committee. In 2016 David was appointed an Honorary Fellow in the School of Agriculture and Veterinary Science - University of Melbourne. David has been an active contributor to the development of industry policies related to the stewardship of, GM crops and pastures within Australian agriculture.
Job Titles:
- Manufacturing - Engineering Leader
Experienced Leader in building teams that are responsible for New Production Introduction, Supplier Management, Procurement, Manufacturing Planning, Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, and end-to-end responsibility for NPI, production, and delivery.
● 18 years' experience in supply chain functions for technical hardware products.
Derek is an experienced leader and business focussed project manager. He has a particular passion for innovation and getting technology to the marketplace, a keen interest in start ups to exploit novel technology and in finding opportunities to 'value add' in the agribusiness sector (food, feed & fibre).
In recent times, Derek has overseen the commercialisation of a novel technology from lab to market, incorporating supply chain development and technology deployment. He has a strong background in commercial project management across science, ICT and energy efficiency projects. Organisations benefit from his experience in opportunity assessment for technology commercialisation, international market analysis and development, new enterprise conception and design.
Over the last 5 years, Derek has been actively involved in trade missions in the region including India, Hong Kong and China and has also worked in Malaysia and Singapore, the US and Canada. In previous roles, he was responsible for the Project Management and consulting functions for several related companies and also responsible for industry engagement across sectors, including negotiation of partner agreements with university, commercial and government agencies.
A recognised industry leader in Australia and New Zealand, Derek is a former chair of the AusFoodtech committee for AusBiotech and a member of the 'Return on Science' Agritechnology Investment Advisory committee (administered by Auckland UniServices on behalf of the NZ Ministry for Business Innovation & Employment). He has served as a committee member on the NSW Product Development and Innovation Group for the AIFST and Derek has been a featured panellist and speaker at conferences in Australia and New Zealand.
Job Titles:
- CEO / Auckland UniServices Ltd
Dr Andy Shenk has a PhD in Biological Sciences, and has had a 30-year career spanning academic research, management, venture investment and governance in biotechnology and nutrition start-up companies, and senior management in a major NZ corporate. As a CEO and company director, Andy currently works across many fields of research, development and commercialisation of intellectual property, including early-stage investing in new technologies here in New Zealand and overseas.
Job Titles:
- VP, Global Partnerships at LocalCover
Software and Media Industry business leader with an exceptional track record of developing and launching innovative companies across multiple geographies globally.
An impressive ability to cultivate large-scale strategic partnerships and grow international sales channels through an extensive global network has driven the ability to mold startups into highly impactful enterprises.
Demonstrable success has come from significant horizontal expertise around market entry strategies, particularly market validation, with a unique finesse for international commercialization.
An active investor in early stage companies throughout New Zealand, Europe and Asia, having helped raise over $18m USD in seed capital and participating in exits of over $400m.
Job Titles:
- Investment Manager / Brandon Capital Partners
Before joining Brandon Capital Partners Duncan spent 15 years in early stage technology commercialisation and business development and 5 years in clinical veterinary practice including leadership roles during the 2001 foot and mouth outbreak in the UK. Most recently Duncan was the Chief Executive of WaikatoLink Ltd the commercialisation company of the University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand. In addition to commercialisation and start-up governance experience, Duncan has led a range of initiatives including the development of seed funds, an international internship programme, and collaborations, including KiwiNet - a consortium of 15 New Zealand research organisations to facilitate commercialisation. Duncan has a particular interest in the agritech, animal health and life science sectors, is founder of a number of start-up ventures and has held Directorships with Aduro Biopolymers, Ligar Polymers, Aldera Animal Health, PA Therapeutics and Auramer Bio. Duncan is Executive Chairman of Kea Therapeutics Ltd, Brandon's first new Zealand investment, and is a member of Auckland Uniservices' Biotech & Life Sciences Investment Committee. Duncan has a BVSc from Massey University.
Job Titles:
- CEO at Middlemore Clinical Trials
- Medical Physician
Edward is a qualified medical physician with many years experience in health consulting , pharmaceutical development and clinical trail research. He holds several directorships in New Zealand based companies spanning medical evacuation services in the Pacific, Principal investigator at South Pacific Clinical Trials and as a director of the health consulting company Nazadel.
He has local senior level management experience in several US based pharmaceutical companies and has been chief operating officer of Medtral Limited.
Currently Edward is a board member of Melanoma New Zealand. he is also been an Assessor for the Ministry of Business and Innovation and Employment (MBIE) with regards to high value manufacturing and exports for 4 years.
His consultancy experience encompasses many broad areas in health including:
Job Titles:
- Director Commercialisation / Auckland UniServices Ltd
I enjoy being at the edge of innovation and commercialisation. I love helping inventors and businesses see their ideas take flight. I am thrilled when I am part of team developing and implementing new innovations!
Specialties: Corporate and commercial law, Innovation, Commercialisation, Deal negotiation, Licensing, Start Up formation and funding agreements, Finding solutions to break through barriers, Intellectual property strategy.
Job Titles:
- Managing Partner / Matū Fund
Greg is involved in the development, commercialisation of novel and scientific technologies through his investment fund Matū. This fund invests in early stage innovative ideas suitable for disrupting large global markets. He has been actively involved in this area for the last 18 years having held a number of CEO and Senior Executive roles in large public multi-national companies both in NZ and internationally, and in partnership with the NZ Venture Investment Fund.
In 2016, Greg co-founded Mekonos, a medical device company out of research from Canterbury University, that develops robotic tools to enables biomedical researchers to deliver macro molecules and biological components to cells with greater control and accuracy.
Greg chairs the Boards of Objective Acuity, Humble Bee, Matū and Gresan Consulting, is a Director of Mekonos, Lanaco and Clean Planet, is a Committee Member on several Return on Science and Momentum Committee's and the Technology Transfer Advisory Board of Canterbury University and is a Founding and Current Executive Council Member of the Angel Association of NZ.
Job Titles:
- Principal
- Commercialisation Consultant
Ian Boddy is the principal in his own technology consultancy IKBConsulting. He has a PhD in organic chemistry from the University of Auckland, was a Research Fellow at Cambridge University and then a Senior Research Leader with the large German agrochemicals company, Schering AG. He was with AgResearch Ltd as GM Commercial and is a member of the New Zealand Institute of Directors. Ian is currently a director of Terax Limited, The Centre for Space Science and Technology and Chairman of Honeylab Ltd.
Job Titles:
- Investment Analyst / New Zealand Growth Capital Partners
Maria Jose has a Postgraduate Diploma in Bioscience Enterprise from the University of Auckland and a Biotechnology Engineer from Universidad Andres Bello in Chile. While developing her undergraduate studies and along with other partners, she founded VidaOx, a small Chilean Venture related with Biotechnology and Food technology. She has also been involved in research related to Aquaculture, Environmental Biotechnology, Biomedicine and Plant Biotechnology.
Since 2019 Maria Jose has been working at NZ Capital Growth Partners as an Investment Analyst.
From 2017 to 2019, Maria Jose was at Auckland UniServices as a Commercialisation Analyst. During this time she has also joined Micro-CV, a Computer Vision Venture from the Auckland Bioengineering Institute that the runner up position at Velocity 2017, as well become the National Business Development and Partnerships Lead for Chiasma, a student led organisation that ties Industry with STEM students.
Maria Jose was part of the first generation of Momentum Investment Committee members and previous experiences also include working in Venture Capital. Broader interests include volunteering, mentoring, and finishing her Masters in Bioscience Enterprise.
For over twenty five years, Renee has led strategy and market assessments spanning most segments of the North American and European food, beverage, and their related ingredients industries. Special expertise includes flavors, sweeteners, texturants, bulking agents, proteins, and nutrition-related ingredients.
Her consulting work focuses on the identification and analysis of new opportunities and the development of strategies for technology and growth. TFG's clients include those in the global food ingredients space, select CPG firms, and US based Private Equity groups. Prior to TFG, Renee was a Senior Manager in Arthur D. Little FMCG practice, where she also consulted to food and food ingredient clients.
Job Titles:
- Strategic Business Advisor
Job Titles:
- Executive Director
- Executive Director Commercialisation / Auckland UniServices Ltd
Will Charles has been Executive Director Commercialisation since 2005. During this time UniServices has transacted over 300 licensing deals, started 50 companies and raised over $150 million in venture and seed funding for these companies, and has successfully exited a number of these. He is also the manager for the University of Auckland Inventors Fund, a $20m evergreen fund dedicated to start ups generated by staff and students at the University of Auckland.
He set up the TransTasman Commercialisation Fund, a A$30 million seed fund with four Australian Universities and sat on the Investment Committee of the fund. He is a director of a number of start-up companies. He set up and is responsible for the direction of Return on Science which is part of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Economic Development's Commercialisation Partner Network. Most recently he founded Momentum, a unique student led investment and start-up funding process that allocates the University of Auckland Inventors Fund to student ventures. He has been a speaker at a number of international Technology Transfer events including the Association of Technology Managers in the US (AUTM) and BioEurope.
Previously, Will has had extensive senior commercial experience in businesses in Europe, Asia and New Zealand where he held executive positions at a number of companies including Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline, Roche, Celltech and Wolters Kluwer.
Job Titles:
- Agritech & Foodtech Chair