BioMelbourne Network
Progressing BioIndustry
BioMelbourne Network Board, Management and Patrons
The BioMelbourne Network Board meets at least six times a year and is chaired by Mr Andrew Macdonald.
BioMelbourne Network’s responsibility as
an Industry Development and Trade Marketing Agency requires considerable understanding of the biotechnology industry.
The BioMelbourne Network is an Incorporated Association under the Associations Incorporation Act 1981.
The Network is governed by a Board that delivers expertise to progress the Victorian biotechnology industry in the following areas:
The Board is responsible for the Network’s statutory and financial reporting obligations as well as ensuring that the business of the Network is managed and administered effectively.
Chairman of BioMelbourne Network & CEO, OTEK Pty Ltd
Mr Macdonald is CEO of OTEK Pty Ltd, an environmental consulting company with offices throughout Australia and China. His previous role was as the President of YM BioSciences Australia Ltd after being the CEO of publicly listed drug development company Cytopia Ltd. Including four years as Chief Financial Officer at Biota Holdings, he has over twenty years commercial experience working across the biotechnology, technology and finance sectors. Mr Macdonald has an extensive background in managing national and international operations and corporate activities including partnership deals, mergers and acquisitions and capital raising activity.
He has held a variety of executive management positions with companies including Willis Ltd, Richard Oliver and Sharinga Networks and has been based in the USA and the UK at different times of his career. In addition to board responsibilities within the YM BioSciences group and Cytopia Ltd, Mr Macdonald has previously held a board role at Verva Pharmaceuticals Ltd, represented the sector on a Victorian Government sponsored biotech Working Group and is currently on the board of a number of private investment companies. He is a CPA, with Science and Business degrees, and a member of the AICD.
Michelle Gallaher joined the BioMelbourne Network as Chief Executive Officer in late June 2008. With 18 years experience in the Victorian healthcare, research and biotech sectors, principally in in
vestor relations, government affairs and communications, Michelle has an indepth understanding of the needs and pressures of the local biotech industry.
For the past four years Michelle was the Director of Public Affairs at the Australian Stem Cell Centre fully engaged in the very public presentation and perceptions of this new and rapidly developing field of research. Michelle began her career as a health care provider, working within major teaching hospitals and private practice, moving into pharmaceutical marketing and eventually into a listed Biotech company.
Michelle has an undergraduate degree in allied health (Orthoptics) and postgraduate qualifications in business and public relations.
Michelle’s role is to continue the success of the BioMelbourne Network in designing and delivering activities that contribute to the growth in knowledge, experience and connectivity of the 185 members and the environment in which we all operate.
Treasurer of BioMelbourne Network
Ashley graduated with a PhD from Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, Scotland and has been working in the Pharmaceutical Industry for around 20 years. During this time he has held positions in the UK, USA and Australia. Ashley most recent role has been with GlaxoSmithKline where he was responsible for the ongoing management and future development of GlaxoSmithKline’s collaborative research efforts in Australia and New Zealand which include over 30 projects with research institutions and biotechnology companies across the country.
Dr Stella Clark is currently Principal of Stella Connect, her own business founded in October 2011 to facilitate partnerships, collaborations, executive development and mentoring in the biosciences. Before that she was CEO of The Bio21 Cluster for nine years and has held other senior management roles in higher education and biomedical research. Stella graduated with a PhD from the University of Melbourne and has had a distinguished career in medical research. She has been President of the Australian Society for Medical Research, and the Australasian Research Management Society, a Member of NHMRC Council, a Member of the Leadership Victoria Board and an Honorary Fellow of Museum Victoria.
Chief Executive Officer
Joe Baini has more than 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry focused primarily on commercialisation, marketing and sales of a variety of top selling drugs. His vast responsibilities have also included partnership, government relations and licensing negotiations. Since 2008 he was headed up Exec Factor, focusing on Executive Coaching and Mentoring of senior Executives across the industry and providing meaningful and positive strategic input to a cross section of industry companies. During this time he has also been intimately involved with several Biotechnology companies, mostly in the capacity of strategic advice and has been a director of Avexa and bluechiip (two member companies). Most recently Mr. Baini was appointed as Interim CEO for Immuron Limited. Prior to founding Exec Factor in 2008, Mr. Baini was the General Manager of Gilead Sciences Australia, New Zealand and Asia. At Gilead, Mr. Baini grew the business in Australia and New Zealand by almost 900% during his five years as head of the subsidiary.
Chief Executive Officer
Dr Julian Chick was appointed as Ch
ief Executive Officer and executive Director of Avexa from August 2005 till June 2010. He graduated with a PhD in Muscle Physiology from La Trobe University in 1998 and joined Amrad Corporation Limited as a Senior Business Development Manager in April 2002. Prior to joining Amrad Corporation Limited, Dr Chick had five years experience as an investment adviser and financial consultant with Prudential-Bache Securities, BNP Paribas and Salomon Smith Barney. Dr Chick also spent time working for Foursight Associates as the principal analyst reviewing healthcare and biotechnology investment opportunities for private equity investors and venture capitalists.
Executive Director
Ernst & Young
Alun is an Executive Director in Ernst & Young’s Research & Development practice in Melbourne and has extensive experience in assisting clients access government support for innovation and R&D activities. Alun
has been with Ernst & Young since 1996, having joined the firm from the (now) Commonwealth Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, where he was involved in delivering government innovation incentives to industry.
Whilst at Ernst & Young, Alun has worked closely with many biotech and pharmaceutical companies and is a longstanding member of Ernst & Young’s national Health & Life Sciences practice. He has a Masters Degree in Physics from the University of Melbourne and is a member of the Australasian Industrial Research Group.
Alun is also at the forefront of the Ernst & Young response to government policy developments in the innovation area. The release of the Cutler Green Paper in late 2008 following the review of the National Innovation System is a case in point, with Alun heavily involved in the preparation of submissions of behalf of clients and in discussions with government and the Review Panel.
Managing Director / Executive Vice President South Asia Pacific
Fresenius Kabi Australia Pty Limited
Zita Peach is Managing Director/Executive Vice President South Asia Pacific with Fresenius Kabi
Zita's role is primarily responsible for ensuring strategies for sales and profit growth are clearly defined and achieved in the South Asia Pacific region for Fresenius Kabi products.
Zita completed a Bachelor of Science at Melbourne University in 1985. Prior to joining Fresenius Kabi, Zita held the position Vice President of Business Development with CSL Limited and also worked as Commercial Director/Sales & Marketing Director of AMRAD Pharmaceuticals and then as the Commercial Director for Merck Sharp Dohme.
Zita is a board member of BioMelbourne Network, Vision Eye Institute and Starpharma. Zita is also a member of AusBiotech, Australian Institute of Marketing (AIM) and the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD).
Zita is fluent in English, Hungarian and French and enjoys snow sports.
Vice President & General Manager
Ikaria Australia Pty Ltd
Lorna is currently General Manager of Ikaria Australia Pty Ltd, a biotherapeutics company which she established in Melbourne in January 2009.
Lorna has enjoyed a successful 25-year career in the pharmaceutical industry, encompassing clinical research, business development, marketing and sales, all across a wide variety of therapeutic areas, including Respiratory, CNS, Cardiopulmonary, Metabolic, Psychiatry, Neurology, HIV and Vaccines. She has worked in the US, Europe and Asia Pacific. She immigrated to Australia in 2002 and worked for GSK Australia as the Commercial Vice President for five years.
Lorna graduated with a PhD in Neurobiology (University College London); BSc in Pharmacology (University of Glasgow) and went on to hold academic positions at the Cardiothoracic Institute at the Royal Brompton Hospital (London) and at the Royal Post Graduate Medical School (London).
General Manager
Maureen O’Keefe joined the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute in March 2006 as General Manager where, in additional to general management responsibilities, she is managing a $190 million WEHI expansion building project.
Ms O’Keefe has a strong background in academic and scientific administration and was the Director of the Office of the Vice-Chancellor, University of Melbourne.
Her achievements have taken in high-level strategic projects and relationship management roles, as well as significant general management positions including General Manager, Faculty of Science. She played key roles in the establishment of the University of Melbourne Melbourne Scholarships Program, the online university U21Global, and Universitas 21, an international network of universities.
Ms O’Keefe has a Bachelor of Science Degree with Honours, a Diploma in Education, a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Melbourne and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and the Williamson Community Leadership Program.
She is also currently a member of the Council of the Victorian Cancer Agency, a Ministerial appointment which commenced in 2007, and the VCA Clinical Trials Working Group.
Director - Licensing & External Research
Merck & Co.
Prior to joining Merck, Phil spent seven years in small to medium biotech companies in Scandinavia. Phil held project and executive management positions in Active Biotech Research (Sweden) and Santaris Pharma (Denmark) during this time.
Before leaving Australia he had been the head of the Research Laboratory in one of Australia's leading heamatology departments at St Vincent's Hospital Sydney for over 10 years. The theme of the laboratory was antisense and ribozyme mediated ablation of bcr-abl expression in Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia. As an adjunct position Phil also ran the Molecular Medicine Diagnostic Laboratory for the hospital pathology service, SydPath.
Phil holds a Ph.D. from Monash University, which was followed by post-doctoral training at the Murdoch Institute in Melbourne and University College, London. He also holds a MBA from the University of Sydney.
