The document outlines key considerations for scientists transitioning from academic to commercial laboratories, including differences in culture, career advancement, and the significance of intellectual property. It highlights the current landscape of biotechnology, the importance of entrepreneurial spirit, and the decision-making process for a successful career move. A live webinar hosted by John W. Ludlow offers further insights and resources for interested participants.

1. Making the Move from the Academic
to the Commercial Lab:
What You Should Know Before You Go “All In”
Brought to you by Principal Investigators Association
Presented by: John W. Ludlow, Ph.D.
Live Webinar Thursday, January 17, 2013 at 2:00 PM EST
For More Information visit http://bit.ly/LabCareer
For More Information visit http://bit.ly/LabCareer
Or Call 1-800-303-0129 ext.506
Or Call 1-800-303-0129 ext.506

2. Thursday: January 17, 2013
2:00 PM EST | 11:00 AM PST
This insightful Webinar will cover areas to be considered when making the career
change from an academic setting to the commercial lab, including the culture of the
commercial laboratory working environment, career advancement, scientific recognition,
mentoring, and availability of opportunities.
55Key Take-Aways:
Key Take-Aways:
•Similarities and differences between academic and commercial
•Similarities and differences between academic and commercial
laboratory working environments
laboratory working environments
•Suggestions on how to increase your autonomy and independence
•Suggestions on how to increase your autonomy and independence
in conducting research at aacommercial laboratory
in conducting research at commercial laboratory
•How to ‘hedge your bets’ so that deadlines and milestones are
•How to ‘hedge your bets’ so that deadlines and milestones are
reached
reached
•Balancing publishing and intellectual property generation
•Balancing publishing and intellectual property generation
•The difference in costs between academic and commercial
•The difference in costs between academic and commercial
laboratory research
laboratory research
Attend the Live Webinar and receive a free recording in
CD-ROM, MP4 or PDF Transcript..
For More Information visit http://bit.ly/LabCareer
For More Information visit http://bit.ly/LabCareer

3. Making the Move from the Academic to the Commercial Lab:
What You Should Know Before You Go “All In”
• Erosion of academic research support contributes to a
career change to commercial laboratories
• Desire to pursue science having a more direct
application
• Career advancement
• Political environment
• Compensation considerations
• Time and Effort

4. Presentation Goals
1. Points to consider when
contemplating a change from an
academic to a commercial
science career
2. Similarities and differences
between the two laboratory
settings
3. Career advancement in the
commercial sector
Areas of emphasis are highlighted in yellow

5. Presentation Outline
1. Introduction
• Current landscape
• Large vs. small companies
• Contract research
2. The two cultures
• Academic
• Commercial
3. Making the move
• Decision
• Action
4. Advancement after the move
5. Suggested resources
6. Summary and closing remarks

6. Current Landscape
The Framework
• Biotechnology leverages our understanding of
the natural sciences to create novel solutions
• Biotechnology is grounded in the pure
biological sciences of genetics, microbiology,
animal cell cultures, molecular biology,
embryology and cell biology
• The foundation of biotechnology is based in our
understanding of cells, proteins and genes
• The discoveries of biotechnology are intimately
entwined in the industry sectors for
development in agricultural biotechnology,
biofuels, biomanufacturing, human health,
nanobiotechnology, vaccines, tissue
engineering and regenerative medicine

7. Current Landscape
We have all heard about the challenges of
changing career paths ‘in this
environment’
• Unemployment among scientists tends to
be less than in other fields
• Opportunities tend to be more available
the closer you are to the bench
• There are geographical differences in
opportunities for those wanting to move to
a commercial laboratory
• Research and development dollars in
commercial laboratories are not at the
levels they were in the past
• The landscape is dynamic

8. Commercial Biotechnology Labs
• Part of a not-yet profitable company to conduct
research and development studies for a repeatable
and scalable business model
• Perform fee-for-service analysis for healthcare,
environmental, and veterinary organizations
• A division in a profitable company to carry out
research and development studies for pipeline
products
• A service company providing biological products for
the academic and other private sector laboratories

9. Large Companies
• May be publicly traded or privately
held
• May have multiple geographic
locations, holdings
• Not always easily defined by number
of employees
• Often have multiple products on the
market, or many services which they
offer
• Usually have multiple divisions
• Clear delineation of responsibilities

10. Small Companies
• May be publicly traded or privately
held, often privately held
• Usually have a single location
• At the low end, less than 10
employees
• Often have a few select products on
the market, or limited services which
they offer
• Startup companies fall in this
category
• Employees often wear ‘multiple hats’

11. Startup Companies
• In the phase of research
and development for
markets
• High risk / high reward
profile
• Scalable
• Value often based on IP
• Founder, Venture Capitol,
Angel Investor funded

12. Startup Company Considerations
• How secure is the IP
• What are the plans for growth
• Track record of the founders
• Current financing
• Burn rate
• Projected runway to cash
extinguishment
• Plan for continued funding
• Recognize that many startups fail

13. Contract Research Organization (CRO)
• Offers fee-for-services support
primarily to manufactures of
medicinal products and
biotechnology companies
• Current Good Laboratory
Practices (cGMP) compliant
• Follow Standard Operating
Procedures (SOP) for work
performed
• Provide quality assured
documentation to client

14. Contract Research Organization (CRO)
Depending on the organization, services provided may include,
but are not necessarily limited to:
•Laboratory analysis
•Experimental design
•Product development
•Manufacturing
•Pre-clinical studies
•Clinical trial management
•Project management
•Data entry and statistical analysis
•Institutional review board (IRB) approval
•Document preparation and submission to regulatory agencies

15. Contract Research Companies
• May be large or small
• Defined scope of work
• Defined deliverables
• Timelines may be rolling
• While no true ‘ownership’ of the
projects, opportunities to work
in a variety of areas

16. The Two Cultures
Academic
• Knowledge for
knowledge sake
Commercial
• Having profit as
the chief aim

17. The Two Cultures
Academic Company
Freedom to choose pursuit Defined pursuit
Intellectual curiosity Product development
Prestige of independence Corporate identity
Publications Patents
Grants Corporate support
Build a group Build or join a group
Soft timelines Fixed timelines
Success is determined by finances

18. The Two Cultures
Freedom to choose pursuit vs. defined pursuit
• Arguably one of the most critical differences to
consider when deciding to move from academics to
a commercial setting
• Can you get excited about projects that you did not
design?
• Do you see an opportunity to ‘make it your own’?

19. The Two Cultures
Intellectual curiosity vs. product development
• Ideally the project will satisfy both
• Development tends to be more predictable
• Do you see an opportunity to pursue curiosities?

20. Publications
• Publications are still important for validating
company’s technology
• Need to be vetted by legal before
submission
• Timing may be linked to milestones and
press releases
• Same considerations for poster and podium
presentations

21. Intellectual Property (Patents)
• Intellectual property is defined as creations of
the mind for which property rights are
recognized under intellectual property law
• Owners of IP are granted certain exclusive
rights
• A patent by itself does not grant the inventor
the right to commercialize the protected
technology; a patent grants the right to
exclude others from commercializing it
• Continuing to secure additional IP, as well as
leverage existing IP, are critical to a
company’s success
• Ultimately, IP needs to be translated into a
revenue-generating product for a company to
enjoy some degree of financial stability

22. Decision Making
• Confirm there is a viable market
• Is there sufficient capitalization
• What are the competitive advantages
• Will there be competition with industry leaders
• Is the technology niche too small
• Assess the founding team stability
• Is the growth pace too rapid
• Have trust in the sources utilized to answers these
questions

23. Attitude
Entrepreneurial spirit
Balance competing priorities
Risk / Reward tolerance

24. Taking Action
• Are there any conflict of interest
issues to be addressed?
• Determining what belongs to you
and what belongs to the academic
institution
• Release from your academic
responsibilities
• Notifying granting agencies of
your academic departure

25. Advancement
• Rank initially assessed by length of
service
• Responsibilities similar to
academic positions, with different
nomenclature
• Success rate for deliverables
• Organization size dictates
advancement opportunities
• Local biotechnology environment

26. Suggested Resources
• Colleagues who have ties to industry
• Faculty at colleges and universities with
biotechnology programs
• University Technology Transfer Office
• State Biotechnology Office
• Networking events at scientific meetings
• Industrial internship, fellowship, apprenticeship
• Visiting a biotechnology company

27. Summary and Closing Remarks
• Milestone driven
• Product development or service provider
• Patents
• Commercial success

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