Attending Companies Serve as Professional Mentors for Early-Stage Life Science Entrepreneurs
GLEN BURNIE, Md., March 20, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- CSSi LifeSciences™'s Jim Sergi and Heidi Nelson-Keherly, PhD recently served as professional mentors at the NIH CAP FeedForward™ Sessions in Irvine, CA (March 6-7, 2017) and Washington, D.C. (March 16-17, 2017). Managed by Larta Institute, this year’s events brought in 58 bioscience companies who received feedback from nearly 260 industry and domain experts, including representatives from GE, UMBC, Focus Bankers, and the FDA.
During the two-day workshops, Jim and Heidi provided the 2016-17 cohort of award-winning startup companies with the useful tools and resources as well as real world, pragmatic advice and solutions needed to meet their development and commercialization goals. These interactive discussions focused on servicing each company’s specific needs and covered pertinent industry topics such as identifying the best target market, designing the program studies for IND and NDA/BLA submissions, accessing capital, establishing product pricing, and preparing for possible commercial exits.
“During the FeedForward™ Sessions in Irvine, I had the honor and privilege of working alongside some of the industry’s most influential business leaders, executives and accredited investors in the industry,” said Jim Sergi, President of CSSi LifeSciences™. “We all gathered together for the common purpose of guiding and inspiring some of the brightest entrepreneurial minds to help them create a successful future for themselves. I was extremely grateful for the opportunity and appreciate Larta Institute for hosting and inviting CSSi LifeSciences™ to these wonderful events. We look forward to returning in the future!”
“Participating as a mentor was a very rewarding experience, as it allowed me to connect with aspiring entrepreneurs on both a professional and personal level,” said Heidi Nelson-Keherly, PhD, Executive Director of Preclinical Research. “This was not only a transformative experience for the mentees, but it also helped create a monumental opportunity for the mentors to discover and interact directly with emerging companies from all over the country. These events are valuable for addressing the business needs of both the mentor and mentee and establishing long-lasting strategic relationships. I thoroughly enjoyed the D.C.-based event and the opportunities it provided to CSSi LifeSciences™, the entrepreneurs and the industry as a whole!”
Larta Institute’s FeedForward™ Sessions have become a scouting ground for industry and early-stage investors to discover and meaningfully connect with companies in successive CAP cohorts. For the past 11 years, the program has remarkably obtained 39 acquisitions (most recent being Avalon Biomed, acquired by NuSmile and Advanced Circulatory Systems, acquired by Zoll), and $925M+ in funding generated by NIH CAP alumni companies.
“We truly appreciate CSSi LifeSciences™'s recent participation in our FeedForward™ Sessions, as the need for industry leaders to collaborate and foster the sharing of best practices with startup companies has never been greater,” said Judy Hsieh, Program Director, Larta Institute. “Jim and Heidi brought their exceptional preclinical and clinical research knowledge and therapeutic drug and device expertise to our mentee companies, who are in need of perfecting their business models in order to successfully transition their innovations into the marketplace. Getting the right people in the room for each company’s need has been a Larta trademark for the past twelve years.”
About CSSi LifeSciences™:
CSSi LifeSciences™ ensures a successful and expeditious pathway to commercialization for our clients’ drugs and medical devices by providing insight-driven analysis that saves time, development costs, and resources. CSSi LifeSciences™ enables faster, more informed decision making to increase commercial success, while reducing the risk of late-stage failures and post-authorization action. CSSi LifeSciences™ is headquartered in Baltimore, MD, with additional offices in San Francisco, CA, London, UK, and Hyderabad, India. For more information, visit www.cssilifesciences.com, email info@cssilifesciences.com, or call (888) 279-8388.
About Larta Institute:
Larta Institute, founded in Los Angeles in 1993, is an internationally recognized and mission-driven innovation accelerator that provides a runway of success for world-changing ideas in agriculture, energy and healthcare. Larta Institute has helped more than 10,000 companies transform ideas into commercialized innovations that feed, fuel and heal the world. With a global network of entrepreneurs, mentors, investors, industry leaders, research institutions, government agencies and support organizations, Larta conducts commercialization assistance programs throughout the U.S. and in more than 20 countries. Follow us on Twitter@LartaInstitute.
About the National Institutes of Health CAP:
The NIH Commercialization Acceleration Program (NIH CAP), Larta Institute’s longest running commercialization program, provides tailored one-on-one advisors and business assistance to NIH’s top tier grantees in Phase II of the SBIR/STTR program. Through Larta’s trademark network-centric practice, the entrepreneurs receive the guidance and tools they need to transition their technologies to the marketplace. Designed to service each company’s unique needs, the NIH CAP has a notable track record of 39 acquisitions (most recent being Avalon Biomed, acquired by NuSmile & Advanced Circulatory Systems, acquired by Zoll), and $925M+ in funding generated by NIH CAP alumni companies.
About FeedForward™ Sessions:
FeedForward™ Sessions are closed-door, invitation-only workshop sessions for participating NIH CAP companies to present their 18-month strategic plans to industry and domain experts drawn from senior stakeholders, investors and other representatives in the medical and healthcare community. Larta designs each session with specific company needs in mind, for feedback on everything to do with their business and marketing model and practical advice on building and operating their companies.
Media Contacts:
Courtney Megaughey
Public Relations & Marketing Coordinator CSSi
(443) 308-5831
150889@email4pr.com
Corey Carleton
Communications Director
Larta Institute
(213) 538-1441
150889@email4pr.com
