Helping an Emerging Biotech Hire a CMO Ahead of Urgent IND Filing
Challenge
The client, recently out of stealth mode, faced a critical need to hire a Chief Medical Officer to lead their clinical program and secure an IND filing within nine months. This milestone was essential to unlock the next tranche of funding. Additionally, the client lacked the capacity to conduct an exhaustive headhunting process. Educating potential candidates on their unique platform and leveraging the experience of their senior leadership team, scientific advisory board, and non-executive directors were key priorities.
Approach
Leveraging our extensive network-built over years of attending industry conferences-alongside our proprietary database and market-leading candidate identification tools, we conducted a comprehensive search focused on competitors within the autoimmune space in San Francisco and surrounding areas. This enabled us to quickly create a longlist of potential candidates with the required experience.
We conducted over 50 internal first-stage interviews to rigorously assess both technical expertise and cultural fit. Within two weeks of taking the brief, we presented the client with a shortlist of the top five candidates.
All five were selected for initial interviews and received overwhelmingly positive feedback. Two candidates were then invited for on-site visits. One standout candidate emerged from this process and, after meeting with additional members of the scientific advisory board and PE partners, gladly accepted the role.
Chief Medical Officer
6 weeks time to hire
Candidates shortlist submitted within 2 weeks
A deep dive into candidates’ specific therapeutic experience was essential, particularly their ability to handle IND processes for unique biologics products. We focused on identifying individuals with the rare skill set required by the client and strong networks in the Life Sciences Venture Capital space. This ensured the selected candidate could drive the clinical programme forward while effectively liaising with investors to support the organisation’s future growth.
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