Looking across the biopharmaceutical industry landscape, several noteworthy medical advances have occurred in the last year. According to a recent article in STAT, new drugs for schizophrenia, muscular dystrophy, and pulmonary hypertension are among the most significant innovations to emerge in 2024. Progress is also being made in a variety of other diseases, including cancer, sickle cell disease, and HIV. These advancements underscore the biotech industry’s relentless pursuit of solutions for diseases that affect large swaths of society — a mission deeply aligned with the Termeer Foundation’s commitment to supporting CEOs and leaders who drive these breakthroughs for all patients.
The past year also brought challenges to the industry, particularly in the form of sluggish investments, notably in early-stage biotech companies. Despite this uncertainty, the Termeer Foundation has remained steadfast in its mission to empower first-time CEOs and leaders working on cures for diseases that impact patients worldwide. This resilience reflects the foundation’s belief in fostering leadership as a key driver of innovation, even in the face of broader market headwinds.
Looking ahead and building off the progress made in 2024, the Termeer Foundation’s top priority is to broaden its reach to support life science leaders nationally and globally. Human disease knows no borders, and the foundation recognizes that accelerating disease research translation, especially in challenging financial times, requires engaging companies and collaborators worldwide. As Catharine Smith, Executive Director of the Termeer Foundation notes, “Human health and well-being are not just Massachusetts concerns; they’re global concerns. Over the last year, we’ve been very intentional in how we support leaders across the globe to ensure that we are building, working, and collaborating on a global scale. For example, we’ve expanded our recruitment efforts for our Fellows (first-time CEOs), with 14 countries and 11 states represented among the 2024 applicants, and look forward to further expansion to reflect how global collaboration can accelerate advancement.”
Expanding Global Footprint
Last June, the Termeer Foundation took its annual celebration, Connections Empowering Cures, to the West Coast, convening an inspiring event that brought together biotech and life sciences innovators, entrepreneurs, and leaders from across the globe. The evening, which coincided with the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) international conference, featured a keynote speech from Elizabeth Wood (Founder & CEO of JURA Bio, Inc.), 2022 Termeer Fellow, who spoke about her leadership journey and the impact the Termeer Fellows program had on her own growth as a leader, as well as a panel featuring industry luminaries John F. Crowley (President & CEO of BIO), Yael Weiss (2022 Termeer Fellow, CEO of Mahzi Therapeutics), Sarah Boyce (Termeer Mentor, President and CEO of Avidity Biosciences, Inc.) and the 2024 Termeer Scholar Charlene Son Rigby (CEO of Global Genes), who shared invaluable insights on the human element in cutting-edge research, innovation, and patient advocacy.
In addition, the Foundation embarked on its inaugural trip to the Netherlands in March 2024, hosting a delegation of 10 Termeer Fellows and team members to participate in a rich dialogue and week-long exchange with several academic, non-profit, and government partners, including the Netherlands Innovation Network in Boston, Netherlands Enterprise Agency , Health~Holland International, HollandBIO, Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, MOITI (Massachusetts Office of International Trade and Investment), and MassBio. This international mission shares the common goal of patient-centered innovation and is working to ensure that patients around the world get the transformative therapies they need.
“We are honored to be part of an official program of cooperation with the Netherlands to boost the life science ecosystems of the Netherlands and Massachusetts” said Smith “Our 2024 delegation gave us an opportunity to bring everyone together in person and focus on bi-directional sharing with innovators, academics and investors in other geographies to learn more about their science and business approaches as well as their patient communities.”
Diverse Voices Inspiring Innovation
The Termeer Foundation is built on the principle that innovation is better for patients when the people leading that innovation come from all walks of life. Over the last year, the Foundation has begun to expand its support of diverse leadership in the biotech industry. This commitment to diversity is reflected in the 2024 class of Termeer Fellows where 53 percent are women. This is the second year in a row the organization has selected a cohort of fellows in which women are fully represented.
In November, the Foundation held its inaugural Women’s Retreat for Termeer Fellows.
Held at the Beauport Hotel in Gloucester, MA, it was designed to give attendees new tools, insights, and a strengthened sense of community. The event was a unique opportunity for learning, connection, and growth, with tailored programming and discussions dedicated to empowering female leaders in the biotech industry.
“As a human-centered organization, the humans are what’s most important to us,” said Smith. “When we heard from our women entrepreneurs that they wanted to build a close community and develop deeper interactions with mentors, we were very responsive to that, and so our first-ever women’s retreat was the initial step in that direction.”
By the Numbers
By all measures, it has been a notable year for the Termeer Foundation. Perhaps nothing illustrates that more clearly than a glimpse at some of the key metrics from its signature Fellows program:
- Over the last year, the Foundation led 150 hours of 1:1 coaching for fellows with subject matter experts and executive coaches and 100 hours of values-driven leadership programming.
- Over 200 connections created within the Termeer network in the past year.
- Since its inception in 2018, the program has engaged 66 biotech entrepreneurs (61 Fellows, 5 Scholars) and 52 mentors.
- Remarkably, nearly 80% of Termeer Fellows remain in the same leadership role.
- 8 countries and 6 states represented by the Termeer Fellows and Scholars since 2018
Stories of Success
As the Termeer Foundation closes out 2024, there are many stories of success from its fellows and scholars. From individual awards and achievements to major clinical advances to securing seed funding and partnerships to grow their companies, these biotech leaders are working at the forefront of healthcare innovation. (See our LinkedIn page for more highlights of these leaders.)
For example, Minmin (Mimi) Yen, PhD, MPH, a 2020 Termeer Fellow and the CEO and Co-Founder of PhagePro. At the Netherlands delegation last March, Dr. Yen won a pitch competition for her company at Innovation for Health. PhagePro is a Boston-based biotech startup comprised of experts in bacteria and bacteriophage (or phage) — viruses that only target and infect bacteria. Yen and her colleagues are committed to developing phage-based solutions to reduce the burden of antibiotic resistance, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
Charlene Son Rigby, a 2024 Termeer Scholar, also has an inspiring story. As the CEO of Global Genes, she has dedicated her career to bridging the gap between data, technology, and the life sciences, with a focus on generating real-world impact for patients with rare genetic diseases. Her commitment to rare genetic diseases stems from her daughter’s diagnosis of a rare genetic disorder. At Global Genes, Son Rigby has set ambitious goals for the RARE-X research program to enhance data-driven approaches that accelerate the development of treatments for rare diseases globally. She spoke about her experiences as a parent, advocate and entrepreneur in rare disease at the Termeer Foundation’s West Coast celebration (noted above) in June.
In addition, Alvaro Amorrortu, a 2023 Termeer Fellow and CEO of Mediphage Bioceuticals, led his company to close their seed funding round this year. The company is working to advance the next generation of genetic medicines. Amorrortu participated in the Termeer Foundation’s first-ever cycle of mini-grants that offer support for current Fellows in a seed funding round, enabling them to hone their fundraising strategy, pitch or external communications. Fellows who utilized the grant said they felt more confident in their fundraising strategy and/or pitch due to the support they received. “As a small, early-stage biotech company, it is very difficult to make resource allocation decisions, and sometimes, even the most trivial or small investments are deprioritized, despite their potential high return on investment,” said Amorrortu. “Working on the pitch deck with professional help was not in the consideration set for us. Access to funding was critical to do it.”
Beyond these noteworthy achievements, the Foundation itself is growing, both in size and in impact. The organization recruited and hired a new program network coordinator, Imran Ganda, and brought on 31 advisors and mentors to support our fellows. Additionally, over the past year, the foundation has sponsored 10 other organizations to support their own missions of advancing leaders, community, and cures.
“The depth of these accomplishments reflects our long-term goals as an organization,” said Smith. “And those are to not only be responsive to the needs of patients and entrepreneurs across the globe, but to also seek out relationships and partners that are truly laser-focused on patient-centered innovation.”