RED SKY PARTNERS - Key Persons
Doris Peterkin specializes in solving the operational and organizational challenges facing clinical and commercial stage clients in small to mid-size life science companies, including start-ups and companies who are leveraging "virtual" operational models. In addition to providing strategic assessments, Doris serves in interim C-level role (CEO, COO) for those clients in the process of building their executive teams. She has led translation of new therapies from preclinical development into early clinical trials and has extensive experience working with clinical key opinion leaders in oncology. Her technology expertise includes biologics, cell-based therapeutics and combination medical devices.
Over her career, Doris has served in senior roles in corporate development, marketing, program management and product development including Genzyme and Antigenics (now Agenus). Most recently, Doris was the CEO of OncoPep, a clinical stage biotech developing immunotherapeutics for the treatment of hematologic and solid tumors. Prior to OncoPep, Doris was CEO of Healagenics, (biologic solutions for wound care) and co-founded MIACH Orthopaedics (bioengineered surgical implants for connective tissue restoration).
Doris is a mentor with the MIT Venture Mentoring Service and an advisor with Springboard Enterprises.
Doris has an MBA from Boston University School of Management and a B.S. in biochemistry from VA TECH.
Jessica Duda is an experienced corporate and business development professional and has spent her career in the life sciences industry. She has provided advisory services to a wide range of of early stage healthcare companies. She was a Director of Business Development at Harvard University's Office of Technology Development (OTD) where she supported the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering in its efforts to translate cutting edge innovations into commercial outcomes by completing licensing and collaboration deals with biotech and pharma companies. She has extensive experience with intellectual property protection, strategic portfolio planning and the structuring and negotiating of licensing agreements.
Prior to joining OTD, Jessica worked with the team at Third Rock Ventures to found NinePoint Medical, a platform imaging company, where she was the first employee driving early stage company operations and business development. Earlier in her career, Jessica gained corporate development, regulatory, and manufacturing experience at Cyberkinetics, a neurotechnology company, and experience in venture capital as an Associate at Polaris Ventures Partners.
Jessica earned an AB degree from Dartmouth College and BE, MS and MEM degrees from Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College.
For over 30 years Skip Irving has been advising companies on business strategy, product commercialization, R&D planning and business development in the biotech, pharmaceutical and medical products industries. As an advisor to Red Sky Partners, he works with senior management, boards of directors and investors on a range of strategy, product planning, financing and business development issues in the industry.
Over a span of 35 years, Pamela Hay has worked for numerous biopharma companies, initially in positions as in-house legal and business positions of increasing responsibility. As a founding partner of Red Sky Partners, she then spent 15 years as a management consultant focused on interim C-level roles and strategic advisory and business assignments.
Prior to her recent retirement as a partner at Red Sky, Pamela's consulting assignments included numerous interim executive roles and strategic assignments to biotech/biopharma companies to support periods of transition and growth. These assignments involved companies and projects spanning the start-up through Phase 3 product development stages in multiple therapeutic indications and modalities. In these roles, she often led the planning, diligence process and negotiation of partnering, licensing and M&A transactions. Her assignments have included serving as founding CEO for Sight Stream (formerly Kera Therapeutics), interim CBO for Ribon Therapeutics, co-CEO of Harbour Antibodies (where she led its sale to Harbour Biomed), and business strategy and development roles for Redona (formerly 28-7), Nimbus Therapeutics, Merrimack Pharma, Ribometrix, Almirall, Cardurion and Luc Therapeutics.
Previously, Pamela was Chief Commercial Officer of Domantis Ltd, a Cambridge UK biotech company focused on single domain antibody technology where she led partnerships with Abbvie and BMS prior to its sale to GSK for $450m in 2007. She was SVP, Corporate Development at Dyax Corp, where she designed and implemented the company's broad-based licensing and partnering programs for antibody and peptide phage display IP and technology, resulting in over 75 business deals. Her earlier positions include General Counsel of T Cell Sciences and Corporate Attorney at Biogen.
Pamela has a BA in Biology from Cornell University's School of Arts and Sciences, and a JD from the University of Wisconsin School of Law.
Pauline Jen Ryan joined Red Sky Partners in 2014 and serves clients by taking on interim C-level roles (CEO, CBO, COO) or acting as an advisor on general corporate and business development matters. Her particular expertise is with small- to mid-size biotech companies, including startups and companies leveraging "virtual" operating models. Pauline has served as interim CEO or CBO for a number of companies including private companies raising their first VC round and public biotech companies in growth and transition. Pauline served as interim co-CEO of Harbour Antibodies where she led the management of consultants/employees, starting a US subsidiary and completed numerous business development transactions.
In addition to her work at Red Sky, Pauline is an EIR at Mass General Brigham Ventures and also services on the Board of Directors and as CEO for Atropos Therapeutics. Previously, she was CEO of Verik Bio, a biotech startup pioneering T cell-based immunotherapy for solid tumor cancers. Prior to joining Red Sky Partners, Pauline helped lead investor Healthcare Ventures raise a $45M Series A round to launch Proteostasis Therapeutics. In addition to setting intellectual property and business development strategy, she was responsible for establishing and growing all business operations functions such as finance, human resources and communications from launch to 50 employees. Earlier in her career, Pauline was Senior Vice President, Corporate Development & Operations at ImmunoGen, where secured the corporate partnership with Genentech that created Kadcyla® for breast cancer and with Sanofi (then-Aventis) for Sarclisa® for multiple myeloma. She headed corporate strategic planning, business development and alliance management during her tenure there and was also responsible for human resources, manufacturing, and program management during growth and transition stages. She was responsible for raising over $150M in corporate partnerships and was also instrumental in completing a $125M secondary offering.
Pauline is on the National Board of Directors for the Distinguished Young Women scholarship program and is on the Board of the STEM Soaring Eagles Foundation. She was previously a member of the Board of Directors for Lumio and ReviveMed, startups incubated at the Martin Trust Center for Entrepreneurship at MIT, and also for Solmap Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Forma Therapeutics). Pauline was also a founding member of the Biotechnology Industry Organization's Business Development Advisory Committee and launched the BIO Business Development Fundamentals Course in 2003.
Pauline has an MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University, and a BA in Psychology from Northwestern University.
Philip Gotwals became a Partner at Red Sky Partners in 2023 and is building a practice serving company management and investors in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry leveraging his extensive executive experience in corporate strategy, business development, research and product development.
As an advisor to Red Sky Partners, Richard Douglas works with clients on corporate and business development strategy, therapeutic area and target selection and execution on both in and out licensing efforts. He has extensive experience in therapeutic areas ranging from rare diseases, oncology, and ophthalmology to metabolic and cardiovascular disease. His experience includes a wide range of pharma, biotech, diagnostics and device efforts including work with small molecules, biologics, cell and gene therapies.
Prior to his work with Red Sky, Richard had over 30 years of biotechnology experience. He served as Senior Vice President of Corporate Development and Corporate Officer of Genzyme Corporation and was with Genzyme from 1989 to 2011. As a leader of Genzyme's Corporate Development team, Richard was involved in numerous acquisitions, licenses, joint ventures, strategic alliances, and was responsible for starting its corporate venture group. From 1982 till its acquisition by Genzyme Corporation in 1989, Richard served in Science and Corporate Development capacities at Integrated Genetics; initially as Manager of Protein Chemistry Research and then as Director of New Product Development.
In addition to his work with Red Sky, Richard is on the Board of Novavax, Inc. and Aldeyra Therapeutics, Inc. He is also Chair of the National Advisory Board of the Technology Transfer Office at the University of Michigan, serves on two translational research oversite committees for the University's Medical School and is on the Life Science Institute's Leadership Council.
Richard has a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of California, Berkeley and was a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the California Institute of Technology in Leroy Hood's lab, and received a BS in Chemistry from the University of Michigan.
Job Titles:
- Managing Partner
- Advisor to Biotechnology CEOs
Tim Surgenor co-founded Red Sky Partners in 2009 and is its managing partner. He is a creative biotechnology industry professional who has held executive leadership positions in companies focused on commercializing pioneering biotechnology products. He is skilled in public and private company corporate governance, strategy, finance, business development and all functional aspects of product development.
Since founding Red Sky, Tim has been a trusted advisor to biotechnology CEOs and board members, served in interim general management positions and led a wide range of consulting assignments. Recent assignments include leading the virtual management team for Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, leading the process which resulted in Kymera Therapeutics' protein engineering deal with Sanofi, and numerous interim CBO roles with public and private companies. Tim has long term advisory relationships with a number of public and private biotech clients including several at late stage clinical and commercial stages of development.
Tim has more than 40 years of general management experience in biotechnology companies, with executive roles including public company CEO, CFO, public company board member and audit committee chair. Previously, Tim was Executive Vice President of Haemonetics, where he ran business development and global marketing and led numerous technology and company acquisitions. As President of Genzyme's Tissue Repair Division, he led the worldwide launch of several cellular therapy products and was a member of the Genzyme Corporation's investor relations and financing team. Tim has also served as CEO of Cyberkinetics, a publicly traded neurotechnology company and CFO of BioSurface Technology, a publicly traded cell therapy company.
Tim has an MBA from the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration a BA in Biochemistry from Williams College.