Dr. Poonam Malik is a distinguished entrepreneurial business strategist, Life Sciences leader, and innovation investor, with extensive expertise in biotech, health, and digital transformation. She is the chairperson and co-founder of Microplate Dx Ltd, a MedTech company tackling the global challenge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). With over 25 years of experience, Dr. Malik has held impactful roles on national boards in Scotland, including Scottish Enterprise and Skills Development Scotland, advising on economic growth, sustainability, and talent development. She was appointed Co-Chair of Scotland's New Deal for Business Group, working with government leaders to deepen collaboration with the private sector.

As a former Head of Investments at the University of Strathclyde, Dr. Malik led strategic investments into Spinouts & startup companies, returning significant profits via exits. She is passionate about supporting diverse founders, mentors business leaders, and has received several honours, including ‘Business Woman of the Year 2023’ for her contributions to the Business & technology sector.

As Founder and CEO of Symbiosis, Colin MacKay lead the initial financing of the company in 2011. Symbiosis has subsequently grown to be team of 150 people located in Stirling, Scotland, and is becoming a leading provider of clinical and commercial GMP sterile pharmaceutical manufacturing services for clients globally.

Colin graduated from the University of Glasgow with a BSc in Cell Biology and a Masters degree in Molecular Genetics, and later completed a part-time MBA at the University of Strathclyde specialising in international business. He has over 25 years of commercial and senior leadership experience, working to support a range of biotechnology and pharmaceutical clients to overcome their drug development challenges.

He has a deep understanding of the development of mutually beneficial relationships, particularly in supporting drug development projects, to successfully achieve their development milestones, with the ultimate aim of helping new medicines to positively impact the lives of real people.

Steven has over 30 years of corporate development and investment experience in pharmaceutical, diagnostic and medtech R&D and manufacturing. His operational experience includes appointments with Beecham Pharmaceuticals (GSK), Celsis, Active Biotech, KS BioMedix, Plethora Solutions, Cambridge Cognition, eTheRNA and The Native
Antigen Company.

In addition to his operational experience, Steven served as a partner with Gilde Healthcare in the Netherlands, an international life sciences and healthcare investment fund, for over 12 years. He was also an adviser to Sixth Element Capital and a Trustee of The Brain Tumour Charity.

He is a co-founder and CEO of Glen Clova Scientific (GCS), an immune-dermatology business which was established as a spin-out from Dundee University in 2022. Earlier in 2024, GCS secured up to £4.4 million of seed equity investment to build a product development pipeline of a new generation of active biologic drug products to satisfy poorly met market needs in human and veterinary medicine.

As Managing Director of Valneva Scotland, Greig Rooney brings over 20 years of significant management and leadership experience from various esteemed organisations such as GSK and Dechra Pharmaceuticals. His career has spanned both the UK and international markets, where he has been recognised as a highly effective leader known for empowering
and motivating teams to achieve exceptional outcomes.

Driven by a deep-seated purpose to create lasting impact, Greig has dedicated his career to leading and developing diverse teams, transforming businesses, and driving exponential growth across the life sciences industry. At Valneva, Scotland’s largest vaccine producer, Greig leads a team of highly skilled manufacturing and scientific employees who produce two of Valneva’s three licensed vaccines.

Under Greig’s leadership, Valneva Scotland has been recognised for a number of awards, including two wins at the 2024 Life Sciences Scotland Awards: Innovation - Pharma Services & Drug Discovery, and Outstanding Skills Development Award. The Company also boasts zero net waste to landfill, 100% energy from renewable sources, and 99% attendance rate in 2024.

Suzie works as International Business Director of the Association of British HealthTech Industries (ABHI), with nearly 15 years’ experience working across the UK health innovation ecosystem. Dedicated to forming partnerships between the public and private sector, she has supported various institutions collaborate and partner for the benefit of the health system, patients and the economy.

Previously working at a boutique UK consultancy, as well as one of the leading health sciences clusters in London, UCLPartners, she has created market access programs and directed national initiatives such as the national NHS Innovation Accelerator.

She was on the Board of the Digital Health London Accelerator Programme, as well as part of the UK national innovation infrastructure, the Health Innovation Network (HIN). With a background in molecular biology, she has worked across the breadth of the innovation pathway to accelerate patient access to the world’s best healthcare technology.

David is an Honorary Professor and Director of Clinical Innovation at the University of Glasgow and holds a frontline role as an Emergency Medicine Consultant at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH).

Having led on the development of a wide range of solutions within the digital health space, including Lenus COPD and Trauma App, he has a wealth of experience in creating the infrastructure and conditions needed to transform projects into viable healthcare products.

David established the EmQuire research group, through which he plays a vital role in coordinating and supporting quality improvement, innovation, research and education at the QEUH and its Emergency Department.

David is currently also active as the lead for the Living Laboratory’s Digital Health Validation Lab (DHVL), where he advances the development of innovative technologies by helping innovators to generate evidence across the product development cycle

Dr Ruth McLaughlin is Programme Director for the Living Laboratory and has a strong track record in life sciences innovation, with experience across both industry and academia. She has been key in advancing the College of Medical, Veterinary & Life Sciences' industry engagement efforts, including the development of the award-winning Clinical Innovation Zone and the delivery of multi-stakeholder initiatives to translate research into practical applications.

Ruth played a vital role in securing £60 million in funding for the Living Laboratory programme, which is dedicated to strengthening Glasgow’s position as a leader in healthcare innovation. She was also instrumental in establishing the Lighthouse Laboratory, one of the UK's largest COVID-19 testing facilities.

Her work continues to strengthen relationships with key stakeholders, driving economic and social impact through the integration of clinical innovation projects centred around the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) and the development of a thriving healthcare innovation cluster.

Jonathan Williamson is the Chief Marketing Officer at Emblation, an industry leader in medical microwave technology in the fields of oncology, dermatology and podiatry.

Jonathan joined Emblation in 2011 and is responsible for global marketing and international growth strategies. Since launching the Swift product for dermatology and podiatry in late 2016, the company have successfully introduced the technology into 22 markets worldwide and have more than 1500 systems in the field with 400,000 treatments completed.

Jonathan has more than 15 years of leadership experience in sales and marketing, communications, and organisational strategy. He holds an MA (Hons) in English Literature from the University of Glasgow, a Diploma from the Chartered Institute of Marketing, and a Masters in Strategy and Innovation from the University of Oxford. Jonathan is also Vice Chair of ABHI Scotland, the Scottish Member Group for the UK’s leading industry association for health technology.

Richard was born in Paisley in 1969 and was educated at Williamwood High School, Clarkston, Glasgow before graduating with a BA Honours in Political Studies from Stirling University. His first employment was with the South of Scotland Electricity Board and immediately prior to his election to Holyrood worked as an economic development officer for Dundee City Council.

Richard was first elected as a North East MSP in 1999 before winning the Moray by-election in 2006. He served as Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Food and the Environment in the Scottish Government between 2007 and 2016; following this he has held various Ministerial roles before being appointed Minister for Business in May 2024.

Richard lives near Elgin with his wife and two sons.

Mark has spent 30 years in roles within the health sector including biologicals/pharmaceuticals, medical technology and consultancy. In February 2022 Mark became Co Chair of the Life Sciences Industrial Leadership Group in Scotland, he also continues to support decision making for non-medicine technologies through membership of the Scottish Health Technology Group plus as a member of SHIP he raises the profile for the Life Sciences Sector in Scotland. Current focus for the Life Sciences ILG is the refresh of the sector strategy to drive growth and Mark is leading on this work to ensure we not only meet, but exceed, our goal of £8 Billion generated by the Scottish Life Sciences sector by 2025.

Commercially Mark Chairs the Board on Brain Health Scotland Life Sciences Limited which seeks to widen access to clinical trials in the neurodegenerative disease space. Mark is proud to be able to support the Jane Moore Trust, a charity which provides residential education for young people. Mark is Chairs ABHI Scotland and has published on healthcare resource utilization.

Mark Beaumont spent the first chapter years of his career building teams around sporting success and is best known as an athlete and BBC broadcaster. He still holds the 18,000-mile circumnavigation cycling record in a time of 78 days. After 15 years working with a leading mid-market private equity firm, Mark became a partner at Eos Advisory in 2019 to focus on early-stage Scottish science and technology investments. The Eos portfolio currently consists of 24 companies, all focussed on improving lives, across healthcare and environmental sustainability.

Professor Claire Garden has over 15 years of experience collaborating with industry on Life Science curriculum design and upskilling, recently leading Edinburgh Napier University’s participation in the Advanced Therapies Skills Training Network. In 2023 Claire brought industry and tertiary educators together for the first time at the Scottish Life and Chemical Sciences Skills Summit as chair of the Scottish Universities Life Sciences Alliance Skills Committee.

Yvonne is currently the Health and Life Science Partnership Manager (Industry Engagement) with Fife College. She has extensive experience of working with industry to develop bespoke educational and skills training pathways to meet national and occupational professional standards.

Yvonne led the development and establishment of the award winning School of Health, Science & Technology alongside NHS Lothian. She is passionate about engaging with young people and providing career opportunities for the health and life science workforce. She is a key representative for the college educational sector on national and sectoral groups, such as the Life and Chemical Sciences Group and the Scottish Government Healthcare Science Education Review Group.

Dr Ken Sutherland is a leading engineering figure at the interface between medicine, engineering and the life sciences in Scotland and the UK. His influence in this sector has translated into global medical products that bring benefit to clinicians, patients, researchers, and the medical industry. In his role as President of Canon Medical Europe he has secured over £180 million of inward investment from Japan into Scottish R&D over the last 15 years. His current vision in precision medicine is driving new innovations in artificial intelligence/data through collaborations between companies, universities, and the NHS. Ken is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and has recently been elected as a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Sir Mike Ferguson FRS is Regius Professor of Life Sciences. He established the Dundee Drug Discovery Unit which has assets in Phase-1 and -2 clinical trials and spinout companies. He works to grow the local biomedical cluster for regional development. He was deputy chair of Wellcome and is board member for Medicines for Malaria Venture, UK-Biobank and Medicines Discovery Catapult.

With over 13 years of experience in economic development and skills planning, Sarah Hunt is a dedicated professional with a strong foundation in economic and social research. She began her career as a consultant in this field, quickly establishing her expertise.

Since joining Skills Development Scotland (SDS) in 2017 as a Key Sector Development Executive, Sarah has contributed significantly to skills planning across various regional, sectoral, and thematic areas. Her efforts also extended to crucial projects such as SDS’s No Deal Brexit Scenario Planning. In 2021, Sarah was promoted to Key Sector Manager for Life and Chemical Sciences. In this role, she plays a pivotal part in shaping Scotland’s education landscape to meet industry needs. She is a key representative for the skills agenda on national and sectoral groups, such as the Life Sciences Industry Leadership Group and the Scottish Bioeconomy Council.

Outside of her professional achievements, Sarah is committed to mentoring a young person through MCR Pathways, further reflecting her dedication to nurturing future talent.

Professor Dominiczak is a world-leading cardiovascular scientist and clinical academic. She has published extensively in top peer-reviewed journals (over 550 publications, a h-index of 123 according to Web of Science). Between 2010 and 2020 she was Vice-Principal and Head of the College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences at the University of Glasgow. She was the driving force behind the fundraising, development and delivery of the University’s clinical academic campus at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, where she led a triple helix partnership between academia, the NHS, and industry to accelerate innovation, maximize patient benefits and economic growth.

Dame Anna is a member of several editorial boards and, from 2012 - 2022, was Editor-in- Chief of Hypertension, journal of the American Heart Association. Currently, she is Editor-in Chief of Precision Medicine, a new Prism journal of the Cambridge Press.

In March 2020, Anna led the establishment of Lighthouse Laboratory in Glasgow to provide rapid Covid–19 diagnostics, and then was asked to become Director of Laboratories at the UK Department of Health and Social Care to lead all 10 Lighthouse Laboratories across the UK, the role she fulfilled until 2022.

In July 2022 Professor Dominiczak was appointed as Chief Scientist (Health) for the Scottish Government, where she leads and coordinates health research and innovation, working in partnership with the NHS, academia and industry to develop rapid translation and adoption of transformative innovations for the Scottish NHS.