TBA The Biotechnology Initiative

The Voice of Bioscience in Ontario

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TBI CEO committee provides value to stakeholders in Ontario

The Biotechnology Initiative has several standing committees that provide value to its stakeholders and assist in TBI’s overall objective of representing and promoting life sciences technologies and commercial success in Ontario. Through government advocacy, stakeholder engagement, mentoring and education and promotion of Ontario’s world-class science and industry, TBI strives to be the voice of Ontario biotech. This is accomplished by taking an active role when it comes to discussions with government agencies in determining the direction of and the establishment of policies that will help the industry as a whole.

The CEO committee, composed of CEO’s from various companies in devices, diagnostics, services and therapeutics, and chaired by Anthony J. Giovinazzo, CEO of Cervelo Pharmaceuticals Inc is one such committee heavily involved in this discussion. The CEO committee was formed in January 2009 in order to provide a venue for C-level TBI members to have their voices heard. Members include C-level individuals representing biotechnology, service, agriculture, food, environmental and life science companies. Together, members explore effective, actionable answers to the core challenges facing the sector while at the same time allowing senior C-level individuals an opportunity to their share ideas and to help each other with issues that they may have come across in their own entities and experiences.

“CEO committees are not a new idea, and they have a track record of being quite effective,” states Gionvinazzo citing Bio-Connect in San Diego as an example of how a CEO committee can truly work for the betterment of a cluster. At the moment the CEO committee is reaching out to southern Ontario, and to the Ottawa region, but plans to eventually extend its reach to all of Ontario. There are approximately 25 CEO’s that have already joined the committees as well as another 50 C-level individuals who represent more than 25 companies the committee is in the process of reaching out to.

“Eventually we hope that the group will have close to 100 representatives,” he said.

One of the more urgent aspects that the committee has identified as it relates to Ontario is the dire need for capital and additional funding. In response to this pressing need the CEO committee joint-ventured with TBI’s government relations committee to come up with an appropriate set of recommendations and presented this material to the Ontario government. The two TBI committees worked diligently to influence the direction and proposed programs that the Ontario Government put in place for life sciences including the $250 million Emerging Technologies Fund.

“We’re not solely responsible for the establishment of the fund, but certainly our presence and our voice, which was made credible by our articulation of the situation and the fact that several CEO’s are part of the committee, and another two or three dozen CEO’s provided input to the committee, demonstrated that this is a group that stands and speaks on behalf of a fairly large group of companies in the sector. Couple that with the fact that the TBI government relations committee is a group that has significant experience in working with and providing input on policy to various levels of government to meet the needs of the life science industry, I think both sides were quite successful in getting our message across to government,” states Gionvinazzo.

He adds that there are still many things the CEO committee would like to accomplish going forward.

“One is to expand the group across all of Ontario and be as fully representative of the broadly defined sector. Secondly, we really want develop an opportunity for C-level individuals to communicate with each other on issues of importance. Lastly, we hope to better provide TBI members in general with opportunities for learning and training through half day events that are focused on their needs and industry needs,” he said.

“We’re open for business, open to the ideas and suggestions of TBI members. We believe this is a group that can bring additional benefits to all members of TBI not just C-level members and most importantly we hope to provide necessary access to influencing government policy.”