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.

Fractional vs Interim in Life Sciences – Not the Same Thing I’m seeing more life sciences organisations explore fractional senior roles – and they’re often confused with interim roles. Interim: usually full‑time, time‑limited, covering a defined role for a fixed period. Fractional: usually part‑time, longer-term, adding senior expertise for a set number of days or hours without owning the whole role. In a milestone‑driven, resource‑constrained environment, fractional models

Stepping away from a long career in life sciences executive research brought unexpected clarity. After years of working within established organisations, garden leave gave me the rare chance to pause and reflect on what I truly wanted from my professional life. The answer came quietly, while tending to my garden: I wanted to build something of my own. This post shares my journey from being an employee to launching Sharon Shields Consulting, a specialist consultancy focused on