GEO CLUSTER SPEAKER BIOS
KAMAL BISWAS
Kamal Biswas is the President & COO of Xybion Corporation, a leading provider of AI/ML enabled software solutions & consulting services for life sciences & healthcare companies. Their patented generative AI solution won the Best of Show award from BioIT World ‘24. Kamal brings over 25 years of experience in delivering value to customers, shareholders, and employees. Voted top 50 COO by OnCon and top 25 Consultants by Consulting Magazine, Kamal is passionate about digital transformation, AI/ML driven innovation, strategic partnerships, and operational excellence. Kamal has helped global companies solve their business problems and introduce new capabilities, driving growth and innovation using the right strategy and digital technology.
Previously, Kamal was a founding leader of the life sciences management consulting business at Infosys Consulting. He helped several life sciences companies including Pfizer, Novartis, J&J, AstraZeneca, GSK, and BMS, create digital strategies and benefit from the technology-driven innovations. Before this, Kamal spent a decade working in the pharmaceutical industry, mostly with Novartis/ Ciba Geigy, in the late-stage R&D, new product launches, and design manufacturing plants.
Kamal is a former member of the board of Rutgers University Center of Innovation, where he advised on design thinking and innovation, and a Member of the Advisory Council at Stillman School of Business. Kamal is the author of “Pharma’s Prescription: How the Right Technology Can Save The Pharmaceutical Business”, published by Elsevier Publications.
Femi D-Etti
Femi D-Etti is a Chemical Engineer and has been with AstraZeneca for 13 years. He is currently the Vice President and General Manager of the Mt Vernon Operation in Indiana and is a member of the Americas Supply Leadership team. Prior to this, he led AstraZeneca’s Operations in Germany. He has a successful track record representing AstraZeneca Operations in Global and Regional cross-functional teams and has sat on both the Global Supply Chain & Strategy Leadership team and Europe Middle East & Africa Supply Leadership team in previous roles.
JULIE DUNLAP
Julie Dunlap is the Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Officer and Sr. Vice President of Talent Management at Eli Lilly and Company. In this role, Julie has responsibility for all aspects of talent management for Lilly’s 40,000+ employees including recruiting, onboarding, performance and succession management, people strategy, employee and leadership development – with DEI fully integrated throughout. Julie’s team plays a critical role in ensuring Team Lilly can fulfill the purpose of making life better for people around the world.
Julie has a wealth of experience having served in numerous capacities of expanding responsibilities in human resources over the past twenty years at Lilly, including total rewards, recruiting, business partnership, and global strategic project leadership. Prior to this role, she served as the leader of Global Compensation and led the enterprise Future of Work project during the pandemic.
She is passionate about focusing on the “equity” aspect of DEI both inside and outside of Lilly and is particularly interested in advancing opportunities for education. She serves on the Board of Early Learning Indiana which strives to ensure every child is empowered with essential skills to thrive in kindergarten and beyond.
Julie has an undergraduate degree in Economics from Duke University. She is a wife and mother to four children and lives in Fishers, Indiana.
Ramesh Durvasula
As the Information Officer for R&D, Ramesh Durvasula is responsible for the technology portfolio (software, data, analytics, etc) that accelerates the output of Lilly R&D, from drug discovery to clinical, regulatory, pharmacovigilance, etc. His mission at Lilly is to unite science with technology to accelerate the R&D pipeline and deliver innovative therapeutics.
Prior to Lilly, Ramesh spent over a decade at BMS, integrating drug discovery labs and digital systems into seamless capabilities. Prior to BMS, Ramesh spent several years at Tripos, a computational chemistry software firm. He is an active leader in many industry forums such as the Pistoia Alliance, and he is also a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council of Indiana University’s Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering. Ramesh is a member of the Board of Directors of the 16Tech Community Corporation, focused on building an innovation district in the heart of Indianapolis. Ramesh earned his BA in Chemistry and PhD in Biophysics from the University of Virginia.
ANNA HAKOBYAN
Anna Hakobyan is the Global Sustainability, Supplier Diversity & Government Compliance Lead in AstraZeneca, a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company with innovative medicines used by millions of patients worldwide. In this role Anna develops and leads the company’s global procurement sustainability strategy and framework, as well as oversees the Global Supplier Diversity Program and Government Contract Compliance.
Anna has joined AstraZeneca in June 2010 and held multiple roles in Global Procurement over her tenure. Anna has been instrumental in building AstraZeneca’s Supplier Diversity Program and integrating it with its subsidiary MedImmune’s program. She has developed and delivered a robust strategy for AstraZeneca Supplier Diversity Program global expansion, targeting to expand the program to 10 countries outside of USA by 2025. Through Anna’s leadership, the company has received multiple external awards and has been recognized by industry partners, as well as diverse supplier communities for its exceptional support to the development and growth of diverse businesses.
Prior to joining AstraZeneca, Anna had served as the Procurement and Contracts Director at Instos Inc., a minority owned company, where she led the company’s sourcing and procurement activities for a large contract with the US Department of Defense.
Anna is an accomplished procurement professional with over 20 years of domestic and international experience in Procurement & Contracting, Program Management, Compliance, Sustainability & Supplier Diversity, having held various roles across Human Rights, Hospitality, IT, and Pharmaceutical/biotechnology fields. Anna is a Certified Federal Contracts Manager (CFCM) and a Certified Project Management Professional (PMP).
DEE KNOPP
Dee Knopp is the Executive Director of Diversity Alliance for Science, a non-profit 501c3 organization focused on the training, development, and advancing economic inclusion for small and/or diverse businesses in the life sciences. Dee partners with the board of directors and key stakeholders to execute strategies for programming and events, that are aligned with the mission and vision of the organization, as well as driving the strategic planning behind the organization.
Dee is a member of Meeting Professionals Institute and has over 30 years’ experience and dedication in successfully organizing and executing national conference events anywhere from 10 – 2,500 attendees and takes immense pride in the partnerships and long-standing relationships she has built throughout her journey. Creative cost-savings and operational financial growth is key to leading the advancement of DA4S. Her leadership, foresight and passion for the mission and vision of DA4S is what drives her in her leadership role.
Prior to joining Diversity Alliance for Science in 2009, Dee worked for a Contract Research Organization as their Business Director, was an Executive Business and Financial Budget Manager for several high-profile individuals and worked as a Marketing Director in a large corporate dental company. She enjoys volunteering, served as the President of her Parent Teacher Association for four years and on the Board of Directors as the Assistant Regional Commissioner for her regions AYSO.
She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management, minoring in Marketing and Public Relations, and also holds her California Real Estate License.
ROHIT MAHAJAN
Rohit is an entrepreneur, investor and business leader with over thirty years of experience. He is specializing at the intersection of AI, Gen. AI and Healthcare. He is the Managing Partner and CEO at BigRio and Damo Consulting with focus on Digital Transformation. And, Co-Founder and President at Citadel Discovery which is specializing in AI for Drug Discovery.
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering, is a Wharton School Fellow and a graduate from the Harvard Business School. He has completed executive education programs in AI in Business and Healthcare from MIT and Harvard School of Public Health. And, he has recently completed the Global Healthcare Leaders Program from Harvard Medical School.
His first full length book, Quantum Care, A Deep Dive into AI for Health Delivery and Research, has been published and has been trending #1 in several categories at Amazon.
DOUG McHUGH
Doug is the Digital Client Partner for the Pfizer Global Supply (PGS) division and the Enabling Functions. In this role, he and his team are responsible to provide Digital thought leadership and client partnership, define the digital strategy, digital transformation, and to manage the digital portfolio. The global role is accountable for all of the Digital investments in the Manufacturing and each of the Enabling Functions including Global Business Services, Finance, HR, Compliance, and Legal divisions from infrastructure and Cyber threat remediation to Predictive analytics that drive operational improvements in the divisions. Most recently, Doug also added the ESG and Net Zero Digital strategies to his portfolio.
NEIL REICHEL
Neil Reichel has been with AstraZeneca for 9 years. He currently serves as IT Lead for the Americas Region with accountability for AstraZeneca’s Operations sites in North and South America. Prior to this, Neil worked for 4 years in AstraZeneca’s Digital Transformation organization partnering with the business stakeholders to develop advanced digital solutions. Previously, Neil gained extensive and diverse BioPharma operations experience with leading biopharma companies including Pfizer, AbbVie, and Bristol-Myers Squibb. He has held Operations leadership roles in Production, Program Management, Facilities, Engineering and as General Manager. Neil’s operations experience includes Process Development, OSD, Aseptic, Device, and Combination products. Neil holds Bachelor of Science Degrees in Electrical Engineering and in Computer Engineering from the University of Missouri.
DAVID RICCIARDI
David’s experience spans 35 years and has led him to build, manage, and utilize large databases in industries as varied as financial, automotive, pharma and health care. He founded Proximo, an information services company, in 1997, to help clients with data strategy and governance, data warehousing and integration, and AI/ML, predictive analytics and business intelligence. David spends much of his time now as an advisor to clients, helping them to plan and execute on strategies that allow them to leverage data to make better business decisions.
JAMIE SAMUELS
Jamie began her career with Eli Lilly and Company 37 years ago in Information Technology (IT). She accepted her current role in Supplier Diversity Development at the end of 2020 and was promoted to Executive Director in 2023. As Executive Director of Supplier Diversity Development, she develops Lilly’s supplier diversity strategy, champions the use of small and diverse suppliers, and engages with the community to identify, mentor, and grow small and diverse suppliers. In addition, she is a member of the Lilly Racial Justice Commitment Team and the Lilly Global Accessibility Team..
Jamie has been awarded Buyer of the Year by the Mid-States Minority Supplier Development Council four times. She is also a four-time winner of the Lilly Chief Procurement Officer award and a 2021 Lilly DEI award winner. Last year Jamie was awarded the Advocate of the Year by the Mid-States Minority Suppier Development Council. Currently, she serves on the Procurement Council of Disability:IN, and is involved with the Indy Chamber’s Business Equity for Indy Procurement Roundtable.
MANVY SINGH
Manvay Singh, Chief Technology Officer at Synkriom and its group companies, embodies a profound passion for technology coupled with keen insight into its boundless possibilities. His visionary leadership has significantly propelled Synkriom’s rapid expansion and the introduction of innovative solutions. Notably, he has worked on an AI-based Assessment System at VeriKlick that is patent-pending and has successfully deployed it in over 22 countries while achieving an average model accuracy of 90+%. Additionally, he has implemented multiple AI-enabled projects throughout his career.
Manvay’s unwavering dedication to technology and his extensive technical proficiency steer Synkriom’s growth trajectory. His adept problem-solving skills and insatiable curiosity have been pivotal in conceptualizing and enhancing the distinctive product offerings of Synkriom and Symvasy. An expert in LLM models, Manvay has trained several models across industries, further solidifying his expertise. Synkriom and its group companies employ close to 700 employees globally, under Manvay’s adept leadership.
SHIRLEY TANG-AUDRITSH
Shirley is the Supplier Diversity Director at Eli Lilly and Company headquartered in Indianapolis, IN. She has been with Lilly for 24 years, with the past 16 years in Global Procurement. In her current role, she actively engages with local and national advocacy groups for supplier diversity, identifies qualified diverse and small businesses that meet business needs, and advocates the utilization of these diverse and small businesses throughout the Lilly supply chain. While in Procurement, she also has had extensive sourcing experience with Phase I-IV Clinical Development and Regulatory, ranging from CRO/ARO services for clinical trials, Clinical Diagnostics services for Biomarkers, ePRO services, to Patient Recruitment and Retention services. Prior to that, her responsibilities included Intercontinental Regulatory Affairs, Software/Medical Quality Assurance as well as ISO9000 Quality System Implementation.
Externally, Shirley served on the Board of Directors for Diversity Alliance for Science from 2015 to 2018, and was the Coordinator for the NMSDC Healthcare Industry Group. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce Hispanic Business Council, and co-chairs the industry group Helix Supplier Diversity Forum. She was named “2016 Top 30 Champions of Diversity” by DiversityPlus Magazine, “2017 Program Manager of Year” by Diversity Alliance for Science, and “2018 Supplier Diversity Advocate of the Year” by Central Indiana Supply Chain Awards. Under her leadership, Lilly Supplier Diversity Program won numerous awards the past several years. It was ranked No.9 on “Top Companies for Supplier Diversity” by DiversityInc Top 50 out of more than 1800 participating corporations in 2019, and has been recognized on the DiversityInc Specialty List for the past three years. Lilly was ranked #3 on DiversityInc Top 50 list in 2020 for overall performance.
Shirley holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer and Information Science.
DENNIS TRUAX
Dennis Truax is Vice President, Procurement at Eli Lilly and Company where he leads Lilly’s Research & Development Procurement team and Lilly’s Procurement Center of Excellence. In addition to his role at Lilly, he serves on the Board and is the immediate past Chair of the Mid-States Minority Supplier Diversity Council, a regional affiliate of the National Minority Supplier Diversity Council (NMSDC).
Dennis’ 25+ year career with Lilly includes leadership roles in Finance, Sales Operations and U.S. and International Procurement. He led the start-up of the Lilly Capability Center based in Bangalore, India. Earlier in his career Dennis held several Finance roles at Carefirst Blue Cross Blue Shield in Baltimore, Maryland. Dennis received a Bachelor’s degree in Finance from the University of Richmond’s Robins School of Business and his MBA from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business.
ERIC WESPI
Eric Wespi leads a Data Science team at Boston Scientific, working on manufacturing and new product development opportunities with predictive analytics, AI and GenAI methods. Eric also leads a global cross functional AI Computer Vision effort in manufacturing and a Generative AI initiative for operations and quality.
Eric joined Boston Scientific in 2015 and has worked as both a Manufacturing Engineer and Process Engineer in Maple Grove. Prior to Boston Scien@fic Eric spent 10 years working in various engineering and data analysis roles at Intel. He has a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Minnesota and an MBA from the W.P. Carey School of Business at ASU. Outside of work Eric enjoys spending @me with his family, cooking, and being outdoors.
ROBIN WHITSELL
Robin is the founder and president of Whitsell Innovations (WI), Inc. In 2006, she started WI as a consulting firm and hired the first employee in 2007. She subsequently grew WI to the thriving company it is today, with over 70 employees in >20 US states.
Ms. Whitsell has >25 years of life science industry experience, including expertise in clinical development and medical writing submission strategies. She is a frequent speaker at venues such as the DIA annual meeting, the DIA Medical Affairs and Scientific Communications Forum, and the American Medical Writers’ Association Medical Writing & Communication Conference. She has served on the Annual Meeting Program Committee for the DIA for the last 6 years. On behalf of the DIA, she has hosted medical writing training sessions in China, Romania, Israel, Indonesia, and the US. In 2021, she hosted a 3-day intensive via zoom on CTD submissions for Sindusfarma/ANVISA.
Prior to founding WI, Ms. Whitsell was the assistant director of preclinical & clinical development at Inspire Pharmaceuticals (where, over a 5+ year period, she led a single compound from submission of the investigational new drug (application) to submission of the new drug application to the FDA), a team leader at GlaxoWellcome (now GlaxoSmithKline), and a CRA at Parexel International CRO.
Ms. Whitsell was the 2020 DIA MASC Excellence in Service (Medical Writing) Award winner. She was also awarded the 2019 Linda Secola Volunteer of the Year award (nominated again in 2023) and was a 2022 and 2017 (inaugural year) winner of the “Eight that Innovate” competition with the Diversity Alliance for Science (DA4S). Ms. Whitsell was named a 2016 “Remarkable Woman” by Chapel Hill Magazine and was a 2011 winner of the Count Me In pitch competition for entrepreneurs. She teaches a course in clinical development and regulatory writing at Howard University. Ms. Whitsell holds degrees in biophysics and physics from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and interned at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
JENNIFER WILLEY
Jennifer Willey launched Wet Cement in 2017 to help cultivate inclusive, empowered and equitable cultures that drive growth, innovation and loyalty. Her company works with Fortune 500 companies and global associations on the ‘Fearless Fundamentals’ of confidence, communication, connections, control and culture. She’s developed proprietary programs encompassing keynote speaking, learning and development, coaching, consulting and content (including her Fearless in 5 career-enhancing microlearning series). In the past year, she keynoted the NJ Conference for Women, was recognized as the inaugural global ‘Driver of Diversity’ from Captivate, and named the “Woman of Achievement” by the Princeton Mercer Chamber of Commerce.
Her company’s gender equality practice, Advance Women at Work, offers empowerment programs for female employees and Inclusive Leadership Training. Jenn is committed to supporting a number of non-profit organizations supporting underrepresented communities, including Working for Women, Impact100, NextUp, Executive Women of NJ and Covenant House of NJ. She’s most proud of her efforts to launch and co-lead DA4S’ SPIRAL Initiative – Supplier Partnerships for Insights, Relationships and Learning – and serving on the Membership Committee.
Prior to launching Wet Cement, she developed her unique perspective and expertise over decades leading the Health category across strategy, sales and marketing for innovative tech and media companies (like WebMD, Everyday Health, Sharecare, Yahoo and AOL), and her earlier career as a TV news anchor and reporter.
Jenn earned her undergraduate degree and Diversity and Inclusion certification from Cornell University. She is a proud mom to two teenage sons and lives in New Jersey with her husband. Learn more about Wet Cement, contact Jenn directly at [email protected] or via connect on LinkedIn.