SHIFT HEALTH - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Consulting
"For me, Shift Health is more than just a job, it is a second family. We learn together, grow together and have fun together. It is inspiring to work with people who share the same passion for science and consulting as I do. It is equally inspiring to work for a firm that is as committed and invested in my personal and professional growth as I am." Joined in 2011
Since joining Shift Health as an Analyst in 2021, Brendan has worked on a variety of client engagements across multiple sectors to support the synthesis of landscape assessments, competitive intelligence workshops and strategic planning. Brendan's clients have included Janssen, International AIDS Society and the University of Toronto.
Before joining Shift Health, Brendan worked as a Business Development Analyst for a leading health technology firm focused on improving patient care by reducing the burden of rejected blood samples in hospital laboratories. Prior to that, Brendan was a partner in a student consultancy group offering business advisory services to STEM start-ups in Atlantic Canada.
Brendan holds an MBA from Dalhousie University with a focus in Entrepreneurship and Innovation and an MSc in Neuroscience from McMaster University. During his graduate studies, Brendan researched the efficacy of novel, intranasally administered nanogel formulations in the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders and was the recipient of an Ontario Graduate Scholarship.
Since joining our firm in 2008, Charles Khoury has led hundreds of life sciences strategy projects and has established notable expertise in policy strategy for industry, research strategy for academia, and organizational strategy for not-for-profits. Charles' clients have included Roche, McMaster University, King Saud University, Alzheimer's Society of Canada, Gilead, Pfizer, Baycrest and VIDO-InterVac. As Head of Consulting and a member of our Executive and Leadership Teams, Charles supports the development and execution of our firm's corporate strategy.
Having played a significant role in building Shift Health's Middle East portfolio, Charles volunteers his time as a Board Member of the Canada Arab Business Council. Charles earned his MSc in Medical Genetics and Microbiology from the University of Toronto-conducting basic research in the field of virology-and earned an MBA from the Schulich School of Business at York University-majoring in Strategy and Marketing.
Dr. Alain Beaudet is the Past-President of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Canada's premier health research funding agency. In this role, Alain pioneered a far-reaching Patient-oriented Research Strategy and increased CIHR's involvement in global health research, namely through its participation in the Global Alliance for Chronic Disease (GACD), an international organization which he chaired from 2015 to 2017. He also undertook a major reform of CIHR's peer review and grant adjudication processes, to better respond to the organization's broad mandate.
Alain was also the President and CEO of the Fonds de la recherche en santé du Québec (FRSQ) where he formalized a forum of exchange between Canada's various Provincial Health Research Organizations and created an original Biopharmaceutical Research Consortium (CQDM), in partnership with the pharmaceutical industry.
At the world-renowned Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), Alain headed the functional neuroanatomy laboratory, pursuing basic research into the role and mechanisms of action of biogenic amines and neuropeptides in the central nervous system and the application of neuroreceptor trafficking to pain therapies. Before this, Alain earned a medical degree and a PhD in neuroscience from the Université de Montréal and did postdoctoral training at the Centre d'études nucléaires in Saclay, France and the University of Zurich's Brain Research Institute in Switzerland.
Alain has authored over 175 original articles and 40 monographs and book chapters. His numerous distinctions include the Prix Adrien-Pouliot by the Association francophone pour le savoir (Acfas), France's Order of Academic Palms distinguished Officer's award, the Australian Society for Medical Research (ASMR) Medal, and honorary doctorates from Université Pierre et Marie Curie and Université de Sherbrooke. He became a Knight of the National Order of Quebec, the highest honour awarded by the government of Quebec, and was inducted as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and as an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
Since joining Shift Health in 2009, Dr. Anne Mullin has worked extensively with leading decision-makers around the world on large strategic initiatives. She has supported the sustainability and success of numerous international product development consortia, allowed both industry and academic partners to manage risk of high-impact clinical trials, and helped clients from industry, academia and the not-for-profit sector attract capital, establish partnerships and drive innovation.
Anne's clients have included the US National Institutes of Health, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Roche, Sanofi Pasteur, International AIDS Society, Ontario Brain Institute, Toronto Global, Southlake Hospital and the International Vaccine Institute.
As a member of our Executive and Leadership Teams, Anne helps shape and advance our firm's corporate strategy. As a member of Research Canada's Membership Development and Programs Committee, Anne is an active champion of Canada's health research leadership. Anne graduated with an MSc from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, a PhD in virology from The University of Cambridge and an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business, where she specialized in healthcare and life sciences strategy.
Dr. Chris Delvecchio joined Shift Health in 2010 and has since gained notable experience leading complex, multifaceted engagements with industry leaders in areas of corporate and product strategy and opportunity evaluation, with North America's leading universities in areas of research strategy and proposal development, and not-for-profits in creating national strategies and visions. Chris' clients have included Janssen, Sanofi Pasteur, Merck, GSK, Xenon Pharmaceuticals, Capital Royalty, McMaster University, the Canadian Cancer Research Alliance/Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, Saudi Arabia's Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and leading cannabis companies. As a member of our Executive and Leadership Teams, Chris helps shape and advance our firm's corporate strategy.
In addition to his work with Shift Health, Chris volunteers his time with Life Sciences Ontario's Breakfast Networking Committee and mentorship program and with new entrepreneurs in the GTA and Golden Horseshoe seeking to translate their ideas into thriving start-ups. Previously, Chris served as a Project Manager for an early-stage drug discovery company developing the world's first high-throughput live animal screening system to test new drugs. Chris graduated with a PhD in Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences from McMaster University where he specialized in endocrinology and nuclear hormone receptors. He has presented his research at several international scientific conferences and has published his work in top-tier journals.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Consulting
Dr. Don Walkinshaw joined Shift Health in 2012 and has worked extensively with government, academic, biopharmaceutical and not-for-profit organizations to advance innovative research and product development strategies, assess preclinical and clinical assets and source capital for cutting-edge research programs. Don's clients have included the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Janssen, Roche, Sanofi Pasteur, Merck, International AIDS Society, University Health Network, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, A*STAR and the University of Toronto. As a member of our Leadership Team, Don helps shape and advance our firm's corporate strategy.
Prior to joining Shift Health, Don was a post-doctoral fellow in the Division of Cancer Genomics and Proteomics at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre (UHN), where he investigated novel drug combination therapies for leukemia. He also completed a business development internship at Tornado Medical Systems, where he analyzed the market potential, competitive landscape and clinical value proposition for the company's diagnostic imaging technologies. He graduated with an MSc from York University and PhD in Experimental Medicine, where he was a recipient of the Banting and Best Canada Graduate Scholarship for his work on novel signal transduction pathways in cancer.
Job Titles:
- Scientific Director of the TuBerculosis Vaccine Initiative
Dr. Gerald Voss is the Scientific Director of the TuBerculosis Vaccine Initiative (TBVI, Lelystad, The Netherlands) and the Executive Director of SciPeo Sprl, Science & People (Grez-Doiceau, Belgium), a life sciences and coaching consultancy.
Gerald recently served as the Interim Director of the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise (New York, USA) and led the organization through a merger with the International AIDS Society.
He was previously with GSK vaccines (Rixensart, Belgium), overseeing the R&D portfolio for Diseases of the Developing World. During his tenure, Dr. Voss established and lead Product Development Partnerships in HIV, TB and malaria with the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, Aeras, the Malaria Vaccine Initiative and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Gerald holds a PhD in Biology from Göttingen University (Germany) and received his post-doctoral training at Harvard Medical School (Boston, USA).
Job Titles:
- Associate, Shift Health, and Professor, Ryerson University
Dr. Imogen R. Coe was the founding dean of the Faculty of Science from 2012 to 2018 and is a professor of Chemistry and Biology at Ryerson University. She is also an affiliate scientist at St. Michael's Hospital, where her research group studies drug transport proteins. She is the President of the Canadian Molecular Biosciences Society (CSMB) and sits on various boards, including the Michael Garron Hospital (Toronto) and the Canadian Mining Innovation Council. Imogen is also on the international advisory board for STEMM Equity Achievement (SEA) Change, an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) initiative enabling systemic, institutional transformation in support of diversity, equity and inclusion in colleges and universities.
Imogen has advised academia, government and industry on best practices and approaches to improved EDI in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Among other roles, she served as equity champion on the review panel for the prestigious Canada Excellence Research Chairs program supported by the federal tri-councils (SSHRC, NSERC, CIHR) and advised on the integration of EDI into the NSERC Discovery Grants program. She has contributed to national dialogue about these issues through various platforms. She is much in demand as a speaker and panelist and has received numerous awards for her advocacy work.
Dr. Margaret (Peggy) Johnston is currently an independent consultant working with profit and non-profit clients to further their business objectives. Peggy previously served as Senior Program Officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation where she oversaw the HIV team's advanced vaccine clinical development, laboratory and statistical support grants, and helped represent the foundation to private and government partners.
Peggy previously held the position of Director, Vaccine Research Program, Division of AIDS, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which is part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) (1998-2010). In this capacity, she led NIAID's extramural HIV vaccine research grant and contract programs totaling over $250 million a year to support HIV vaccine discovery, preclinical evaluation and development, and clinical research, including NIH's multi-center, international HIV Vaccine Trials Network, the Center for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Immunology and an interagency agreement with the Military HIV Research Program. She also served as NIH's representative to the Global HIV/AIDS Vaccine Enterprise Science Committee as well as several non-US HIV vaccine advisory groups. Peggy became involved in HIV research in 1998, holding positions of increasing responsibility in the Division of AIDS (1987-95) and serving as the founding Scientific Director of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (1996-98). Before HIV/AIDS she was following an academic research/teaching career that included positions at the Rega Institute in Belgium, the National Institutes of Health, and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.
Peggy earned a BS in chemistry from Carnegie-Mellon University (CMU) and a PhD in biochemistry from Tufts University. Her honors include an Alumni Distinguished Achievement Award from CMU, a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary's Award for Distinguished Service (team award), two NIH Director's Awards, five NIH Merit Awards, and several non-government awards and citations, reflecting her contributions to the fields of HIV/AIDS therapeutics, vaccine and prevention research and development. Peggy, a US citizen, resides in Vancouver and Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Canada.
Dr. Michael Julius is the Vice President, Research, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, where he stewards a $125M annual research enterprise. His work towards understanding the biochemistry of lymphocyte activation, and the cellular and molecular interactions culminating in protective immunity have supported his continuing interest in autoimmune diseases, and ailments that involve dysregulated function of the immune system.
Having published over 200 research papers and reviews in his area of expertise, many of which have achieved citation records, Michael is an internationally recognized immunologist. Academic Press, now Elsevier, engaged Michael as the Editor of the highly cited review periodical, Seminars in Immunology.
Michael has Chaired the Canadian Institutes for Health Research review panel for "Immunology and Transplantation", and serves as a member of Scientific Advisory Boards for a number of for profit enterprises. He was elected Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of Research Canada in April 2007, and assumed the Chair of Research Canada in May 2008, stepped down in November 2010 and served as Past Chair in 2011 and now serves as Scientific Advisor.
Michael received an Honours BSc degree in genetics from McGill University in Montréal, Quebec, and went on to do his doctoral work at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California culminating in a PhD in genetics and immunology.
Since joining the Shift Health team in 2021, Dr. Nicole Revie has contributed to a diverse set of projects spanning wide-reaching sectors of the health research and innovation ecosystem. These include developing strategic plans for health research and policy activities and conducting landscape assessments and opportunity evaluations for biopharma products. Nicole's clients have included Janssen, the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, and the International Vaccine Institute.
Prior to Shift Health, Nicole completed her PhD at the University of Toronto in Molecular Genetics, where she focused on pre-clinical development of antifungal drugs against multi-drug resistant fungi. During her graduate studies, Nicole was President of the Molecular Genetics Graduate Student Association and was a recipient of the Canada Graduate Scholarship-Doctoral Award from CIHR. She has authored over 5 peer-reviewed publications.
Job Titles:
- Managing Partner
- Industry Expert
Dr. Roland Turck is a biopharmaceutical industry expert and the Managing Partner of TurckBio. Roland has been involved in many significant projects, including improving the P&L of a division of a large Specialty Medicine company, developing regional strategies, preparing product launches, advising on clinical development strategies, as well as business development and partnering activities for small and large companies.
Roland was previously President of Bayer's Global Specialty Medicine Business, which included the Oncology, Neurology, Orphan Drug, Ophthalmology and Diagnostic Imaging businesses. During his tenure, he orchestrated the launch of 4 major global brands, including Xofigo and Eylea, established Bayer as a player in Ophthalmology, re-organized the Diagnostic Imaging business, and aggressively expanded the Hemophilia and Neurology businesses.
Before joining Bayer, Roland was President of Bayer Schering Pharma's Latin American business, with full P&L responsibility for all therapeutic areas and sales of US$1.5B. In earlier roles, he was CEO of subsidiaries in Canada and New Zealand and head of Marketing and R&D for a business unit in Germany.
Since joining Shift Health as an Intern in 2004, Dr. Ryan Wiley has helped to grow Shift Health into one of the most dynamic and trusted advisory teams in the health and life sciences arena, with footholds in North America, Europe and the Middle East. Working with global leaders in the contexts of business, healthcare, science and policy, Ryan has a unique ability to unlock the benefits of convergence across disciplines, sectors and borders, bringing discerning leadership and unrelenting determination to Shift Health's most complex engagements.
Ryan has worked with the world's largest biopharmaceutical and life sciences companies, for which he has supported product development and market access strategies globally; non-governmental and philanthropic organizations, with which he has worked on impactful public-private and public health partnerships in the developing world; government departments and agencies, which have sought his advice on policy and funding strategies to empower health research and innovation; and academic institutions and hospital-based research institutes, for which he has helped to mobilize more than $1 billion for health R&D.
Ryan received his PhD in immunology from McMaster University, where he is now Adjunct Professor. He is Policy Advisor to and Past Chair of Research Canada, Co-chair of Life Sciences Ontario's Annual Policy Forum, and a Director on the boards of Amref Health Africa, the Canadian International Health Education Association (CIHEA) and CanHealth International.
Prior to joining Shift Health as an Engagement Leader, Elisa worked as a Manager at KPMG's Healthcare and Life Sciences Practice. Her consulting experience has been in both healthcare and the public sector where she specialized in clinical operational flow, designing fit-for-purpose programs and executing their implementation on a grand scale. Her experience includes developing strategies and clinical services plans for hospitals, government program reviews and cost-benefit analysis, COVID-19 response planning, rapid testing implementation, Lean Management implementation in healthcare settings, operational improvements, and more.
Elisa holds a PhD in Immunology from the University of Toronto. Her research focused on the impact of the gut environment on education of immune cells, how this education differs from that at other sites in the body, and results in distinct roles and capacities of these cells that may be important in human health and disease.
As an Engagement Leader at Shift Health, Elisa is responsible for guiding teams in the development of project outputs on a wide range of client projects, and informing key decisions on resourcing, team development and performance.
Hemal completed a PhD in Molecular Genetics in Cologne, Germany. Her research focused on unraveling the complexities of plant cellular stress pathways. This passion for plant biology led her to a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Tübingen, Germany, where she explored legume-microbe interactions. In 2019, she wrote an independent research proposal, for which she secured a fellowship award from the German Research Foundation for further postdoctoral research studies at the University of Toronto, focusing on the role of non-coding RNAs in plant cellular pathways.
Since joining Shift Health in 2020, Jamie Ching has supported a wide breadth of projects for academia, industries, and non-profits. These include developing strategic plans for research and commercialization activities, composing scientific communications, and conducting landscape assessments and opportunity evaluations. Jamie's clients have included Biogen, Merck, Janssen, Queen's University, and the International Aids Society.
Before Shift Health, Jamie completed a year-long internship at a top-10 pharmaceutical company, where she played a critical role in the initial certification of a sterile facility for vaccine manufacturing. Afterward, Jamie earned her MSc in Physiology and Pharmacology at Western University, specializing in the differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells into adipose stem cells using human induced pluripotent stem cells and CRISPR-Cas9. During her graduate studies, Jamie authored a peer-reviewed paper and was a recipient of the Canada Graduate Scholarship-Master's Award from NSERC.
Job Titles:
- Director, People and Operations
Martin leads Shift Health's People and Operations portfolio and serves as a member of the Leadership Team. Martin is a highly accomplished human resources professional, bringing nearly two decades of experience in diverse industries, including hardware, retail, healthcare, telecommunications, professional services and consumer goods.
Guided by a deep and abiding commitment to the principles of inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility (IDEA), Martin brings strong leadership, professional skills and fresh ideas to enhance the culture, capabilities and wellness of Shift Health's consulting and administrative teams.
Among other areas of responsibility, Martin helps design, implement and manage technology-enabled performance management, professional development and training systems; leads recruitment and onboarding efforts; supports effective project operations; develops and maintains up-to-date company policies compliant with relevant laws and statutes; and partners with Finance to monitor and report on corporate performance.
With his exceptional relationship building skills and his drive for employee success, Martin has partnered with business leaders to build and fulfill their people agendas. He has played critical roles in championing organizational culture and supporting enterprise-wide transformation. Martin specializes in people strategy, employee engagement, inclusion/belonging, learning/development, talent acquisition and management, and compensation strategy.
Martin earned his B.Sc in Management Studies with Psychology from the University of the West Indies, Mona (Jamaica). He later received the Fulbright Scholarship to complete his M.Sc. in Human Resources Management at the Krannert School of Management at Purdue University. In addition, Martin holds certifications in both Project Management and Human Resources, including PMP, SHRM-SCP and SPHRi designations.
Robert Bell served as Ontario's Deputy Minister of Health from 2014 to 2018. Prior to this role, he worked as President and Chief Executive Officer of University Health Network (UHN) or nine years. He was previously the Chief Operating Officer at Princess Margaret Hospital, the Chair of Cancer Care Ontario's Clinical Council and the Cancer Quality Council of Ontario. Bell practiced Orthopaedic Oncology Surgery at Mount Sinai Hospital and Princess Margaret Hospital and is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Surgery at University of Toronto.
Dr. Bell received his Doctor of Medicine from McGill University, a Master of Science from the University of Toronto and achieved his Fellowship in Orthopaedic Surgery in 1983. He completed training in Orthopaedic Cancer Surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University in 1985, and the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School in 2005. Dr. Bell is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, the American College of Surgeons and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.
Today he provides advice to a number of private and public organizations and serves as a director on not-for-profit and corporate boards. He has published three novels, with all proceeds from these books benefiting UHN foundations.