Rethinking Eye Care: From NanoDropper to Mu Medical

What started as a student project has turned into a company reshaping how eye care is delivered.

In this episode of She Leads Biotech, we’re joined by Allisa Song, CEO of Mu Medical, and Mackenzie Andrews, CCO, to talk about the journey from an idea sparked in a research lab to a product now used across thousands of clinics.

They share how a simple question, why are eye drops too big, led to a solution that improves patient outcomes, reduces waste, and is now evolving into something much bigger.

We also get into co-founder dynamics, building in a complex healthcare system, and the reality of being young female leaders in a traditionally male-dominated space.

A practical, honest conversation about building, scaling, and challenging assumptions in healthcare.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction
01:30 Meet Allisa & Mackenzie
04:00 From Research Lab to Startup Idea
08:30 The Eye Drop Problem Explained
13:00 Building NanoDropper
18:30 When It Became a Real Business
22:00 Product Demo & Clinical Impact
26:00 Go-to-Market Strategy
30:00 Working with Insurers, Clinics & Pharma
34:00 Evolving into Mu Medical
38:00 Co-Founder Dynamics & Trust
42:00 Being Women in a Male-Dominated Industry
47:00 Advice for Founders
51:00 What’s Next for Mu Medical

Listen / Watch:
Spotify | YouTube

#SheLeadsBiotech #MedTech #HealthcareInnovation #WomenInBiotech #CNAUSAExecutiveSearch

Finding Your Path in Biotech with Connie Chang

Careers in biotech rarely follow a straight line.

In this episode of She Leads Biotech, we speak with Connie Chang, Chief Operating Officer of ONL Therapeutics, about a career that has spanned big pharma, academia, and emerging biotech, and how each step has shaped the way she leads today.

Connie shares how early career decisions don’t always define where you end up, and why sometimes “the career picks you” rather than the other way around.

We explore the reality of moving between very different environments, from highly structured global organizations to small, fast-moving biotech companies, and what it really takes to adapt and succeed in both.

This conversation also highlights the importance of community throughout your career, the role academia plays in driving innovation, and the personal side of leadership, including navigating family decisions, career risks, and the pressure many women face as they progress into senior roles.

A thoughtful and honest discussion on building a career, leading with intention, and continuing to grow, even when you’re already at the top.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction
01:30 How Connie Found Biotech
04:00 Harvard, Community, and Early Influences
06:30 Big Pharma, Academia, and Connecting the Dots
10:00 Taking Career Risks and Moving to Michigan
14:30 ONL Therapeutics and the Mission Behind the Science
18:00 What a COO Role Really Looks Like in Biotech
20:30 Building Teams in Small Biotech
23:00 Leadership Style and Creating Trust
26:00 Adapting Across Cultures and Environments
29:00 Women in Leadership and Career Progression
32:00 Being the Only One at the Table
35:00 Self-Doubt, Growth, and Resilience
37:30 What’s Next for ONL and Connie

#SheLeadsBiotech #BiotechLeadership #WomenInBiotech #LifeSciences #CNAUSAExecutiveSearch

Leading Women’s Health Innovation: From Clinical Practice to CEO with Mandy Pulliam

In this episode of She Leads Biotech, I’m joined by Samantha (Mandy) Pulliam, CEO and Chief Medical Officer at Axena Health, for a conversation that highlights what it really takes to lead in women’s health.

Mandy’s journey is a unique one. She started her career as a practicing physician before stepping into the biotech and medtech space, bringing with her a deep understanding of patient care that continues to shape how she leads today.

What stood out to me in this conversation is how intentional she has been about bridging clinical insight with innovation. At Axena Health, she’s focused on addressing conditions that have historically been under-discussed and underserved, particularly in pelvic health.

We talk about the realities of building and leading in women’s health, where the need is significant, but awareness, funding, and attention have often lagged behind.

Mandy shares how she approaches leadership as both a clinician and a CEO, how she thinks about patient impact alongside commercial success, and why creating solutions in this space requires both persistence and a willingness to challenge long-standing assumptions.

This is a conversation about leadership, purpose, and the responsibility that comes with developing products that directly impact patients’ quality of life.

And a reminder that innovation in healthcare isn’t just about new technology, it’s about truly understanding the people you’re trying to help.

📌 Chapters

00:00 Introduction
01:48 Mandy’s journey from physician to CEO
03:52 Moving from clinical practice into industry
05:41 Why women’s health remains underserved
07:32 The mission behind Axena Health
09:18 Addressing pelvic health challenges
11:05 Bridging patient care and innovation
13:12 Leadership as both a clinician and executive
15:20 Navigating funding and awareness gaps
17:08 Building solutions that truly serve patients
19:06 Commercial strategy in women’s health
21:14 Lessons learned stepping into the CEO role
23:02 Advice for women entering biotech leadership
24:40 Balancing purpose with business outcomes
26:18 The future of women’s health innovation

🎙️ She Leads Biotech celebrates the journeys of women shaping the future of life sciences.

Subscribe for more conversations with biotech leaders, founders, and innovators.

#SheLeadsBiotech #WomensHealth #BiotechLeadership #LifeSciences #MedTech #WomenInBiotech #HealthcareInnovation #CNAUSAExecutiveSearch

Rethinking Rare Disease: A New Model for Ultra-Rare Therapies with Beth White

In this episode of She Leads Biotech, I’m joined by Elizabeth (Beth) White, COO and Co-Founder of Orphan Therapeutics Accelerator, for a conversation that really stayed with me.

Beth has spent her career at the intersection of science, strategy, and commercialization, and today she’s focused on one of the biggest challenges in our industry: how do we bring therapies to patients with ultra-rare diseases when the traditional biotech model simply doesn’t support them?

As Beth explains, the science has moved forward, especially in gene and cell therapies, but the business model hasn’t kept up. And that’s leaving too many promising therapies sitting on the shelf, never reaching the patients who need them.

What she and her team are building with the Orphan Therapeutics Accelerator is a completely different approach. A nonprofit biotech model designed to rethink how therapies are funded, developed, and ultimately delivered to patients.

We talk about what that actually looks like in practice, from new ways of funding and partnering, to the creation of the CGT Exchange, a marketplace designed to unlock shelved assets and give them a path forward.

This is one of those conversations that really challenges how you think about drug development, investment, and impact.

And a reminder that behind every “ultra-rare” disease are real patients, real families, and a very real urgency to find solutions.

📌 Chapters

00:00 Introduction
01:52 Why ultra-rare diseases remain underserved
03:44 What the Orphan Therapeutics Accelerator is
05:00 Building a completely new development model
06:32 How the nonprofit structure works in practice
08:39 Creating awareness and industry engagement
10:34 Major partnerships and recent momentum
11:39 What the CGT Exchange is and why it matters
13:26 Can this model work at scale?
15:08 Beth’s journey into rare disease and gene therapy
17:01 Bridging science and business
19:18 Leadership across pharma, biotech, and nonprofit
21:19 Big pharma vs biotech mindset
23:09 Leading with limited resources
24:21 Advice for women in biotech
25:37 Risk-taking and career decisions
26:17 The future of rare disease development
28:40 The role of AI in accelerating progress

🎙️ She Leads Biotech celebrates the journeys of women shaping the future of life sciences.

Subscribe for more conversations with biotech leaders, founders, and innovators.

#SheLeadsBiotech #BethWhite #RareDisease #GeneTherapy #BiotechInnovation #WomenInBiotech #LifeSciences #CNAUSAExecutiveSearch

From Data to Discovery: Accelerating Drug Development with Samantha Dale Strasser

In this episode of She Leads Biotech, I sit down with Samantha Dale Strasser, VP of Strategy at Cellular Intelligence, for a fascinating conversation at the intersection of biology, computation, and patient impact.

Samantha’s journey spans biomedical engineering, applied mathematics, physics, and a PhD at MIT, but what truly shaped her path was something deeply personal. Her father’s diagnosis with frontotemporal dementia brought into sharp focus just how far we still have to go in treating complex diseases, and sparked a determination to accelerate how we move new technologies from the lab into the hands of patients.

We talk about her transition from academia into entrepreneurship, co-founding PepperBio, and now her work at Cellular Intelligence, where she is helping to build a platform that is fundamentally changing how we ask and answer biological questions.

What stood out to me in this conversation is just how much the pace of science is shifting. Questions that once took years to answer can now be explored in months, opening up entirely new possibilities for drug discovery and treatment.

We also dive into leadership, resilience, and what it really takes to build something from scratch in uncertain times.

📌 Chapters

00:00 Introduction
00:10 Samantha’s background and academic journey
02:10 Early interest in biology and computation
04:15 A personal turning point: her father’s diagnosis
05:32 Founding PepperBio and early entrepreneurship
06:35 What Cellular Intelligence is building
09:39 The role of AI and large-scale data in biology
10:43 How speed is transforming research timelines
11:41 Building a tech bio company
13:26 Leadership across different stages of her career
15:21 Motivating and growing scientific teams
16:44 Transitioning from operator to leader
18:29 The leadership training gap in life sciences
20:34 Resilience and building a company during COVID
23:44 Advice for scientists interested in entrepreneurship
26:19 What the future holds for Samantha and the field
28:00 A personal mission and long-term vision

🎙️ She Leads Biotech celebrates the journeys of women shaping the future of life sciences.

Subscribe for more conversations with biotech leaders, founders, and innovators.

#SheLeadsBiotech #SamanthaDaleStrasser #CellularIntelligence #BiotechInnovation #DrugDiscovery #WomenInBiotech #LifeSciences #CNAUSAExecutiveSearch

In this episode of She Leads Biotech, Sharron Cox speaks with Joanna Ghayad, Founder & CEO of Joanna Ghayad Coaching, about leadership, influence, and the transition many scientists struggle to make as their careers grow.

Joanna’s career has taken her from working as an oncology pharmacist supporting cancer patients at the bedside, to roles in biotech and big pharma, and ultimately to launching her own leadership coaching practice focused on developing the next generation of leaders in life sciences.

After more than 15 years working across healthcare, biotech, and large pharmaceutical organizations, Joanna began to notice a consistent gap. Scientists are trained extensively in technical expertise, but very rarely taught how to lead teams, influence decisions, and communicate science in a way that drives business and patient impact.

In this conversation we explore the shift from technical expert to strategic leader, why scientists often get “boxed in,” and how professionals in life sciences can take ownership of their careers rather than waiting for someone else to define the next step.

Joanna also shares practical advice for scientists who want to grow their influence, build visibility within their organizations, and develop the leadership skills needed to move into executive roles.

If you're working in biotech, pharma, or the broader life sciences ecosystem and thinking about your next step, this is a conversation worth listening to.

Connect with Joanna Ghayad
LinkedIn: Joanna Ghayad
YouTube: The Revolutionary Stemmist

Joanna has also generously offered listeners a complimentary 20-minute coaching session, available through the link below: https://joannaghayadcoaching.com/conference/form

Chapters

00:00 Introduction
01:34 Joanna’s journey into pharmacy and oncology
03:33 Exploring career paths during pharmacy school
05:08 Transitioning from healthcare into biotech and pharma
09:08 Discovering the leadership gap in life sciences
10:30 Creating leadership training inside big pharma
13:38 Why scientists struggle with leadership and influence
16:08 The myth that scientists aren’t creative
20:40 Launching Joanna Ghayad Coaching
23:35 Moving from operator to leader
26:13 How coaching helps scientists advance their careers
28:20 Advice for scientists who want to grow into leadership
32:03 Navigating power dynamics in organizations
35:11 Authentic leadership and building respect
37:46 How to connect with Joanna

Megan McGill | Leadership, Credibility & Persistence in Biotech

CEO, Brenig Therapeutics

What does it really take to build credibility as a leader in biotech?

In this episode of She Leads Biotech, I sit down with Megan McGill, CEO of Brenig Therapeutics, to talk about leadership, persistence, and the realities women still face when building careers in the life sciences industry.

Megan shares her journey into biotech leadership and what it takes to step into the CEO role in a competitive and evolving sector.

One part of our conversation that really stood out was Megan’s honesty about something many women quietly experience: sometimes you have to outperform everyone else just to be taken seriously.

We talk about the importance of credentials, preparation, and resilience, and why continuing to push forward matters, even when the room isn’t designed with you in mind.

This conversation is an honest look at leadership, credibility, and the persistence required to succeed in biotech.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction
01:45 Megan’s career journey into biotech
07:30 Moving into leadership roles
13:10 The reality of credibility and gender bias
18:20 Why credentials matter in leadership
24:15 Advice for women building careers in biotech
29:40 Leadership lessons as CEO of Brenig Therapeutics
34:30 Final advice for the next generation

🎙️ She Leads Biotech celebrates the journeys of women shaping the future of life sciences.

Subscribe for more conversations with biotech leaders, founders, and innovators.

#SheLeadsBiotech #MeganMcGill #BrenigTherapeutics #BiotechLeadership #WomenInBiotech #WomenInScience #LifeSciences

What does it really take to move from academia to industry… and then into the C-suite?

In this episode of She Leads Biotech, I sit down with Sailaja Battula, Chief Scientific Officer at Ankyra Therapeutics, whose journey is anything but conventional.

Born and raised on a farm in South India, Sailaja became the first in her family to attend college. She completed her PhD while raising two young children, applied for over 200 industry roles to make her transition, built immunology teams from scratch, and ultimately stepped into the CSO role at a pivotal moment for her company.

This is a conversation about intention, discipline, leadership growth, and knowing when you are ready, even before you fully believe it yourself.

We cover:
• Transitioning from academia to industry
• What hiring managers really look for
• Building and leading discovery teams
• Moving from VP to CSO
• Leadership vs management in scientific roles
• Raising a family while building a biotech career

If you are thinking about your next move, especially into leadership, this episode is packed with clarity and practical insight.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction
01:40 Growing up on a farm in South India
07:01 Education, marriage, and moving to the US
08:48 Breaking into biotech with a newborn
11:19 PhD, postdoc, and moving into immuno-oncology
14:37 Why transitioning from academia to industry is hard
19:21 The three questions to ask before applying for a role
22:46 Career progression from scientist to VP
30:12 Stepping into the CSO role at Ankyra
36:16 What changes when you join the C-suite
38:10 Leadership vs management in science
40:38 Advice to her younger self
42:03 Using LinkedIn strategically for career growth
43:42 What’s next as CSO

🎙️ Subscribe for more conversations with women shaping the future of biotech.

#SheLeadsBiotech #SailajaBattula #AnkyraTherapeutics #ChiefScientificOfficer #BiotechLeadership #WomenInScience #CNAUSAExecutiveSearch

In this episode of She Leads Biotech, I sit down with Mori Mohseni, Head of Biology at VidaVinci, for a powerful conversation about persistence, purpose, and what it really takes to lead in drug discovery.

From her early fascination with biology to pivotal roles at AstraZeneca, Novartis, BMS, and now startup biotech, Mori’s career has been defined by one recurring theme: give her the hard problem.

We talk about what it means to search for truth in science, even when the answer isn’t what you hoped for. We explore the transition from big pharma to biotech to startup life, and why those moves were intentional. And we dive into leadership, team building, and the obsession required to move breakthrough science forward.

This is a conversation about loving the work enough to stay with it when it’s difficult, and inspiring others to do the same.

📌 Chapters / Timestamps

00:00 – Introduction and Mori’s early path into science

03:40 – Falling in love with biology and choosing research over medicine

08:10 – The leap from academia into industry

12:00 – A pivotal lesson: “Look for the truth” in drug discovery

15:20 – Seeing a drug go from bench to patient

18:45 – Big pharma vs biotech vs startup: what really changes

23:15 – Building infrastructure from scratch in smaller companies

27:30 – Leading as a servant leader and building strong teams

31:40 – Advice for young scientists navigating today’s market

35:50 – The future of biotech and the need for early innovation funding

40:10 – Leadership in biotech means loving what you do

Closing the Diagnostic Gap: Leadership, Equity, and Global Health with Devasena Gnanashanmugam

In this episode of She Leads Biotech, I sit down with Devasena Gnanashanmugam, VP of Medical Affairs at Cepheid, for a deeply thoughtful conversation about diagnostics, equity, and what it really means to lead in global healthcare.

Devasena’s journey spans medical training in India, pediatric infectious disease at Stanford, work at the NIH, and now industry leadership in molecular diagnostics. But at the center of it all is one consistent mission: improving access to timely, accurate diagnosis for the patients who need it most.

We talk about tuberculosis, HIV, COVID, and the persistent global diagnostic gap — and why identifying the problem correctly is often the most powerful intervention of all.

This episode is about science, yes. But it is also about humility, collaboration, and the responsibility that comes with leadership.

📌 Chapters / Timestamps

00:00 – Meet Devasena Gnanashanmugam
03:10 – From India to Stanford: early influences and medical training
07:45 – Why infectious disease and global health became her focus
11:20 – Tuberculosis as a medical and social justice issue
15:05 – “Find the bug so you can get the drug” – the power of diagnostics
18:40 – The global diagnostic gap and access challenges
22:15 – Lessons from COVID and what changed in molecular testing
26:30 – Transitioning from academia and NIH to industry
30:05 – The evolving role of physicians in biotech and diagnostics
33:50 – Leading from the front and from behind
37:10 – Collaboration, resilience, and staying grounded in purpose

🎙 Listen now on Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you tune in.

#SheLeadsBiotech #DevasenaGnanashanmugam #Cepheid #GlobalHealth #Diagnostics #MedicalAffairs #WomenInSTEM #LifeSciencesLeadership #CNAUSAExecutiveSearch #SharronCoxStudio