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Part 3 of 4.Â
My guest for this week’s episode is Derek Hennecke, a veteran biotech entrepreneur and board member with over 30 years of experience in the CDMO industry, whose mission is to support the biotech revolution and create value for patients, customers, and investors.
In addition to his Board work, Derek previously held leadership positions at DSM and was the Founder and CEO of Xcelience, which he eventually sold to Capsugel Lonza in 2016. Xcelience was a Florida-based CDMO specializing in preformulation, micronization, analytical services, formulation development, cGMP manufacturing, and more. His extensive pharma and cell therapy expertise makes for an insightful conversation that founders can learn from.
Join us this week and hear about:- Derek’s transition from commercial roles to Operations, managing a challenging site in Egypt, and the teamwork that turned it around
- His move to a Biologics site in Montreal and the hurdles he faced there overseeing GMP Operations
- The start of his entrepreneurial journey: buying a portion of a business and founding Xcelience.
Please enjoy my conversation with Derek Hennecke.
Find Our Guest, Derek Hennecke, at these links:Â https://www.linkedin.com/in/hennecke/https://kincellbio.com/
Find Our Host, Jon Chee, at these links:Â https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncheehttps://www.excedr.com
Social & WebsiteLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/excedr/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@excedr Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/excedr_inc Twitter: https://twitter.com/ExcedrInc Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/excedr TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@excedr Podcast Website: https://www.thebiotechstartupspodcast.com/
Enriched Notes:
Topics Mentioned:MDS Pharma Services: https://www.mdsps.com/Xcelience: https://www.linkedin.com/company/xcelience-llc/GMP Operations Roles: https://www.linkedin.com/advice/0/how-do-you-identify-common-gmp-roles-responsibilities-skills-gmpGMP Practices: https://safetyculture.com/topics/gmp/GMP vs. GLP: https://www.excedr.com/resources/gmp-vs-glp-whats-the-differenceMatrix Organizations: https://www.pmi.org/learning/library/matrix-organization-structure-reason-evolution-1837Sales-Leasebacks (SLB): https://www.excedr.com/blog/what-is-a-sale-leasebackEquipment Leasing: https://www.excedr.com/leasing
Timestamps:00:00 Intro01:50 Starting a role in Operations04:01 Derek’s move to Egypt; Improving safety, performance, and cost structure08:03 Scaling the Egypt site and expanding into other markets; Improving product quality and employee safety10:01 Moving back to Montreal, Canada; Dealing with a site failure, deciding to leave the company13:50 Lessons learned from leaving, the importance of saying “no,” and communicating clearly20:16 Becoming VP of GMP Operations of MDS Pharma; Overseeing multiple locations25:08 Navigating the hurdles of a closing business; Buying one of the units in Tampa, Florida27:45 Derek’s jump into entrepreneurship: Founding Xcelience30:00 Early days of running the company, looking into a sales-leaseback, and securing capital38:21 OutroThe Biotech Startups Podcast gives you a front-row seat to the business
and science of building a biotech. Hosted by Jon Chee, CEO of Excedr, the show features honest conversations with founders, execs, and investors about their work, their companies, and how they got there. From scientific breakthroughs to startup lessons, each episode explores what it really takes to grow a life science company—from pre-seed to IPO.
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