Meet the Evaluate Team – BIO International Special: Jon Moser

When did you first attend BIO?
I was a late bloomer, my first time was in 2019 when BIO was in Philly - at the time, little did I know that I would be coming to Philly a lot more in the future, as MMIT (also part of the Norstella group) are headquartered there. Obviously, the next few conventions were a little less "in-person", but it's great to be going back!

What’s your best memory of BIO?
BIO, for me, is all about meeting people - we work with so many incredibly smart people in this industry, who are entirely focused on how they make a difference to patients. We meet many of them during the day, in meetings and breakouts, but the best conversations are always in the evening, when everyone is more relaxed and our barriers are lowered.

If I were to pick a favourite anecdote, it's probably when I decided to walk to our main competitors and openly swap the printed material we had with that which they had. Most of them were appreciative, graceful, and appreciated the direct approach. One, who it's probably better that I don't name, did the swap, then talked to their colleagues, one of whom chased after me across the convention centre. Bizarre!

What are you most looking forward to at BIO 2023?
Meeting people - both colleagues and industry partners. In the remote world we now work in, I find myself spending less in person time with both; these events are incredibly energising for me. I typically come back with a renewed sense of mission and purpose, and a load of new ideas about how we can better support our partners in biopharma.

Where can we find you?
I'll definitely spend a big chunk of time at the Evaluate booth (#2385), but I'll also be meeting with friends and colleagues from biopharma both during the day and in the evenings. It’s worth popping over to the Evaluate booth as the team is running a competition and we have an exclusive new report for attendees. If you want to meet, please just drop me a note, I'd love to spend some time with you.

What should people come to talk to you about?
My team and I are focused on the very top of the new product development funnel - rapidly solving both specific and more pervasive problems for our customers. I'd love to hear about both of those - areas where you're stuck, problems where you have to put a lot of effort in, and just dream about a solution. Equally, I'd love to have a chat about trends in the market, or how you're thinking about the latest applications of artificial intelligence - I've  been dabbling with Generative AI, and the possible applications for biopharma are truly mind-blowing.

What’s the one piece of advice you’d offer a biotech CEO?
I've spent some time recently working with start-ups focused on raising capital, and have been astounded by the ingenuity and rigorous science behind their pitches. Focusing on the science is vitally important, but you also need to think about the market opportunity. You may have the best science in the world, but if no one will pay for it, then patients won’t benefit. Think about the patient from day one, not just in terms of the unmet need and the science, but also in terms of access. Bringing commercial planning earlier into development really boosts your chances of getting funding, of a favourable partnership, and of getting your therapy to market.

What’s your favourite drink?
I've dabbled a lot with cocktail making over the years, and now have a herb garden for this specific purpose. One of my recent favourites is a rosemary and limoncello infused old fashioned. Alternatively, a jalapeno and mango margarita definitely stands the test of time.

What’s really irritates you?
Waste - everything is finite. For me, waste comes in many forms, from the amount of plastic waste that seems almost unavoidable with supermarket shopping, to the huge amounts of time that are sunk into wasteful activities. Anyone reading this will have spent time in meetings with ten or more people that really should have been an email, will have lost sleep worrying about things which they can't effect, or will have had to navigate unnecessary drama and politics in their working life, wasting time and energy.

We should all be focused on a zero-waste policy, not just in our personal lives where cutting our waste is just good for humanity, but also on reducing waste at work - focusing on where we drive impact, which flows through to our customers, and ultimately - in the case of the work we do at Norstella - to improving the lives of patients.