A Practical lens for Board Members - Will this PI Founder still be CEO by Series B? Most European life sciences funds back companies where the founding CEO is a first‑time scientific leader: a PI out of a top lab, an ex‑pharma director, sometimes a computational founder with limited management experience. Very few investment memos say, “And we expect to replace them before Series B.” Yet that’s exactly what happens in a lot of cases—not always for the wrong reasons, but often

Your first five hires will decide whether your “platform biotech” ever becomes more than a pitch deck. In the first 18 months you’re not building an org chart, you’re building an engine: one person who truly owns the platform, one who runs everything that isn’t science, one who turns data into a scalable system, an early regulatory voice to stop you tripping over yourself later, and a business partner who keeps capital and deals flowing.

Choosing where to set up in Europe is just the beginning. The real challenge — and the real competitive advantage — lies in finding, attracting, and retaining the right people in markets where the best talent has choices

For executive search firms and VC talent managers operating in life sciences, ESG has become one of the most consequential forces shaping who gets hired, who gets funded, and which organizations attract the leadership talent capable of building enduring companies.