APOLLO - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the Investment Team
- Venture Partner
Chris has supported over $1.5bn in investments and transactions in biotechnology/pharma spanning research, development, clinical trial design, and personalized medicine and biomarkers.
Chris is a Venture Partner at Apollo and leads severalportfolio companies after incubation
Chris co-founded Avogadro Development Corp and Structured BioEquity. He was also the CEO of SmartZyme Biopharma, an OrbiMed portfolio company, where he was in charge of the company's R&D efforts and an global investor base.
Chris started his career at Genentech where he worked on the development of several medicines and a number of pipeline assets. He earned his PhD in Molecular and Cellular Pathology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical School of Medicine
Job Titles:
- Member of the Investment Team
- Co - Founder & Venture Partner
Alexandra is dedicated to longevity research since her studies at Harvard and is responsible for identifying company building opportunities with global leading research institutes and researchers.
Anela specializes on R&D strategy and on developing and implementing data-driven processes after previously consulting Top Tier VCs and hedge funds at boutique consultancy Cantenion.
Anela is a Principal at Apollo and shapes the R&D strategy and clinical development plans in the portfolio companies by designing and implementing data-driven processes
Job Titles:
- Member of the Investment Team
- Executive Vice President R & D
Gerd has more than 20 years of experience in pharma R&D and previously led research and R&D, among others in the field at Jerini and Oryzon Genomics (leading drug development in epigenetic-based therapeutics).
Gerd supports Apollo and its portfolio as an Executive Vice President R&D
He has more than 20 years of experience in the pharma and biotech industry R&D and previously led R&D at Jerini AG and OryzonGenomics. Oryzon develops novel therapeutics based on epigenetics
Gerd has a broad experience in the development of small molecules, peptides and peptidomimetics covering a wide range of therapeutic areas and therefore can provide highly valuable guidance in shaping R&D
Before consulting international biotech companies, he received his PhD in organic chemistry from University of Konstanz
Jeanne is a member of the Advisory Board at apollo.vc
With over 35 years of expertise in the pharmaceutical industry, Jeanne has held various managerial positions encompassing research and development, commercial operations, business development, and venture investment.
During the last decade, Jeanne served as the Vice President of venture investment within Johnson & Johnson's corporate venture fund, Johnson & Johnson Innovation - JJDC.
Before her tenure at JJDC, she worked as a director in the business development team at GlaxoSmithKline.
Jens is a member of the Advisory Board at apollo.vc
He has more than 18 years of biopharma venture capital and company creation experience and 10 years of operational experience in drug discovery and development.
Jens previously served as President of GlaxoSmithKline's corporate venture fund SR One where during his tenure the SR One team invested over 500 million USD and was involved in 18 IPOs such as CRISPR Therapeutics, TP Therapeutics and Principia, as well as 12 M&A transactions.
Jens is a Kauffman Fellow, a member of the EU-sponsored Gold Track Expert Council, and a passionate mentor for entrepreneurs and start-up teams in the area of innovative life science and healthcare IT.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Investment Team
- Partner
Marianne has more than ten years of experience in the life science industry spanning venture investing, strategy consulting and research and was previously with Wellinton Partners as well as High-Tech Gründerfonds.
Marianne joined Apollo as a partner in 2021 and represents the Fund on the Boards of Haya Therapeutics, Auron, Booster and Cleara Therapeutics.
She has more than ten years of experience in the life science industry spanning venture investing, strategy consulting and research. She previously led investments into a number of life sciences companies including Confo Therapeutics, Imcheck Therapeutics and Cardior Therapeutics as a Principal with Wellington Partners and as an Investment Manager at HTGF and represented the investors at the board level.
Before joining the life sciences team of High-Tech Gründerfonds she worked as a management consultant, supporting pharmaceutical and medical technology companies
Marianne obtained a Bachelor's and Master's degree with distinction in Biotechnology from the RWTH Aachen University and The Scripps Research Institute, and conducted her PhD research focusing on the molecular imaging of cardiac regenerative medicines, where her research has been honored with several awards
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder
- General Partner
- Member of the Investment Team
Ole is a serial entrepreneur, HR expert and former board member of hyper-growth companies with more than 10 years of investment and operational experience who previously co-founded and sold CareerTeam.
Ole co-founded Apollo Health Ventures with Nils in2017 after more than 10 years of investment and operational experience. He supports the Apollo portfolio with hiring best-in-class executives and teams and supports with strategic HR needs as well as team building skills. Ole takes active roles in the portfolio as interim CEO leading portfolio companies to value inflection points
Ole is a serial entrepreneur and HR expert, who previously co-founded CareerTeam, a headhunting agency with over 200 employees and offices in 4 countries, placing executives in the tech and life science industry with a focus on building up innovation labs and new businesses
Ole finished his PhD with distinction at the University of Cologne and California, Berkeley as the youngest and fastest-finishing postgraduate in his faculty and then joined TruVenturo as a partner in 2011,where he was on the board of several hyper-growth companies
Job Titles:
- Principal Scientist & Venture Developer
Stefan uses his scientific background to develop projects and design experiments to understand various aspects of aging, specializing in the aging immune system and identifying models to test molecular interventions.
Job Titles:
- CFO
- Member of the Investment Team
- Partner
Steven is a fully qualified lawyer in Germany and New York and is involved with many operational tasks as well as deal structuring based his previous experience as a corporate lawyer.
Steven is a Partner and CFO at Apollo Health Ventures since 2018 and oversees Apollo's and its portfolio companies' operations and legal affairs.
Steven is a fully qualified lawyer in both Germany and New York, USA and previously worked in the corporate / M&A practice of Germany's leading law firm Hengeler Mueller where he gained broad experience in the biotech and healthcare industry and was involved in numerous VC deals
Frederick Beddingfield MD, PhD, is an internationally renowned expert in the life science industry and has built teams and companies, resulting in the approval of numerous successful global drugs and devices.
He has been Chief Medical Officer of both large and start-up public companies, including Allergan Medical and Kythera, both acquired.
He has served as CEO of biotech private and public start-ups Sienna (which went public just 18 months after its foundation) and Kira and raised over $250 million from blue-chip US investors.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Investment Team
- Partner
- Class 11 Kauffman Fellow
- Kauffman Fellow
Jan is a Kauffman Fellow, who previously headed commercial activities at the Merck KGaA Innovation Center and was Managing Director of early stage VC EMBL Ventures.
Jan is a partner at Apollo focusing on company creation, one of the cornerstones of Apollo's investment strategy
Jan is a Class 11 Kauffman Fellow and a recipient of each, a Boehringer Ingelheim PhD, and an Ernst-Schering Post-doctoral Research Fellowship.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Investment Team
- Operations Manager
Kevin supports Apollo's operations team through his experience as a commercial lawyer.
As our Operations Manager Kevin has a hands-on approach to Apollo´s internal and external operations. He is involved in different financial, legal and operational processes of Apollo and its portfolio companies.
Before joining Apollo, Kevin was part of the restructuring and insolvency department of Leonhardt Rattunde, a leading insolvency law firm in Germany. During this time he was involved in numerous successful turnarounds and company restructurings.
Kevin studied business and law at the Hogeschool van Amsterdam, Alliance University Bangalore and completed his Master of Laws (LL.M.) at the Berlin School of Economics and Law (HWR).
Job Titles:
- a Senior Recruiter
- Senior Recruiter
Lia hires excellent teams for Apollo's portfolio companies after previously working as a principal recruiter for one of the best in class agencies specialized in the life sciences industry.
Lia joined Apollo as a Senior Recruiter and supports Apollo and its portfolio companies in hiring excellent teams
Marcel is Head of Legal and Tax at Apollo Health Ventures and manages the legal affairs at Apollo and its portfolio companies.
He is a fully qualified lawyer in Germany. Before joining Apollo, he worked in the corporate practice of Germany's leading law firm Noerr where he was involved in numerous private equity and venture capital transactions, including healthcare, biotech and other regulated industries.
Marcel holds law degrees from King's College London and Humboldt University of Berlin. Previously, he studied economics, politics and law at the University of Dresden and University of Leiden.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Investment Team
- Senior HR Manager and Recruiter
Michelle recruits best-in-class talent for Apollo and its portfolio companies and holds degrees in biotechnology and biomedical sciences.
Michelle works as a Senior HR manager and recruiter at Apollo and supports Apollo and its portfolio companies in hiring best-in-class talent
Michelle has a deep understanding of the HR needs of biotech companies. She holds degrees in Biotechnology and Biomedical Sciences.
Michelle started her career at an headhunting agency where she specialized in the pharmaceutical sector and gained experience in recruiting for big pharma
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder
- General Partner
- Member of the Investment Team
Nils is a serial entrepreneur with a passion for biomedicine. As co-founder of TruVenturo, he has helped over 30 early-stage startups raise funding, with three achieving valuations over $100M.
Nils co-founded Apollo Health Ventures in 2017 and is one of the most successful German investors and a serial entrepreneur with six exits since 2009
He utilizes his deal-making skills, impeccable business sense, and his expertise in growing early-stage startups to support the Apollo portfolio
Nils and the founding team have successfully raised two fund generations, hired the senior team, and led investments as well as follow-on investments in Apollo's portfolio companies
Nils studied business in Hamburg and at UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) in California, and he completed the EO Entrepreneurial Masters Program at MIT
Job Titles:
- Member of the Investment Team
- Venture Developer
Pascale works on internal venture creation and external investments using her background in early-stage drug discovery. Her works has been published in high-ranking scientific journals.
Pascale works as a Venture Developer and supports both internal venture creation and external investment opportunities, applying her knowledge in early-stage drug discovery processes
She is a molecular biologist by training with a strong focus on neurodegeneration. Pascale obtained her PhD on neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease at the Charité Berlin. She worked for the leading CRO Evotec in the translational neuroscience department.
Pascale holds BSc and MSc degrees from the University of Liverpool and King's College London, has been awarded prizes and fellowships and her work is published in high-ranking scientific journals.
Rob is a member of the Advisory Board at apollo.vc
Rob Scott has over 30 years of leadership experience in drug discovery and development in the global pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.
As the former Chief Medical Officer and Head of Development at AbbVie, he oversaw successful drug development teams responsible for brands like Norvasc, Lipitor, Repatha, Humira, Skyrizi, and Rinvoq.
Prior to AbbVie, he held the positions of Vice President, Global Development TA Head, and Head of Development Design Center at Amgen.
During his tenure from 2012 to 2016, Rob served as a member of the US FDA's Cardiovascular and Renal Drug Advisory Committee, establishing strong relationships with senior FDA staff.