GABC Announces Formation of Advisory Council

Dear Members, Partners & Friends,

We are extremely pleased to announce the formation of the GABC Advisory Council which met for the first time recently for an introductory virtual session with the GABC Board of Directors.

The Advisory Council was established to provide the board and leadership team with objective opinions, suggestions and inspiration about the organization, its activities and development. Members of the Advisory Council were selected and appointed by the GABC Board of Directors and constitute a cross-section of accomplished and successful business leaders and entrepreneurs with deep ties to the German-American business community. We are delighted to have them onboard to help us further our mission of promoting business and trade between Germany and the U.S. and strengthen the impact and relevance of our network.

Please join us in welcoming the inaugural group of eight members of the Advisory Council which will advise and help our organization move forward into the future.

With best regards,

Bodo Liesenfeld

President

GABC Advisory Council

Klaus-Reinhard Bischoff

Head of Research Solutions Global Business Unit, MilliporeSigma

Klaus-Reinhard Bischoff is executive vice president and head of the Research Solutions global business unit in the life science business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, which operates as MilliporeSigma in the U.S. and Canada. Previously, he has held executive roles in the company leading the Global Research & Applied Solutions commercial area, Lab Americas business and the €1.1 billion global Lab Solutions unit. Before coming to the United States, Bischoff led businesses for Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany including assignments in Brazil and Taiwan. He holds a degree in business administration from the University of Cooperative Education in Mannheim, Germany.

Christa Bleyleben

Managing Partner, MassGlobal Partners

Christa Bleyleben, since 2009 Managing Partner of MassGlobal Partners, and partnering with the Cambridge Innovation Center, is supporting US market access and expansion, training and mentoring of innovative international companies. Her special focus is on value proposition, pitch practice, financing & finding needed resources as well as facilitating partnering at senior levels. Previously Christa was Executive Director of the Massachusetts Office of International Trade & Investment, President of the Massachusetts International Trade Council and a Managing Director in Bank of America’s global investment group. Christa is an active angel investor and serves on several advisory boards. She holds an MBA from the Vienna University of Business.

Marc Filerman

CEO, German Accelerator Life Sciences

Marc Filerman is CEO of the German Accelerator Life Sciences Program, and an Entrepreneur-In-Residence at the NYU Entrepreneurial Institute where he provides fundraising, commercialization, and strategic advice to early-stage ventures. Prior to this, he co-founded and launched an NIH-funded home care tech startup, and was an Accelerator Executive at the CIMIT Healthcare Accelerator at Massachusetts General Hospital. In 2012, he co-founded a molecular imaging startup, and before that, he managed development, launch, and growth of Smith & Nephew Endoscopy’s Digital Operating Room business. Mr. Filerman holds a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from MIT.

John Hallinan

Chief Business Officer, Innovation Services, MassBio

John Hallinan is Chief Business Officer and oversees the MassBio Innovation Services programs. His background encompasses venture financings, corporate development, technology licensing, and mergers and acquisitions. Prior to MassBio, John was the Chief Financial Officer at Cytel, a leader in the design and implementation of adaptive clinical trials, and he had been active with MassBio—serving on the Economic Development Advisory Group and as co-chair of the Finance Committee & Entrepreneur’s University. Before joining Cytel, John served as CFO at Signet Laboratories. John currently sits on the Advisory Board of MTTC (the MA Technology Transfer Center), Charité BIH Entrepreneurship Summit, and New Frontier Bio. John holds a BBA from St. Bonaventure University and is a certified public accountant.

Anula Jayasuriya

Founder & Managing Director, EXXclaim Capital; Co-founder EILSF, Los Altos Hills, California

Anula Jayasuriya is a successful private equity executive and venture capitalist and the founder and managing director of EXXclaim Capital, an early stage venture fund focused on catalyzing innovation, entrepreneurship and investment in Women’s Health. In 2006 Anula co-founded the “Evolvence India Life Science Fund”, Anula was previously a partner with Skyline Ventures in Palo Alto, and prior to that with the German/US venture capital firm TVM, in San Francisco. Anula received a BA from Harvard summa cum laude, and an MD and PhD (in Microbiology and Molecular Genetics) from Harvard Medical School. She interned in Pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital and received an MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School. Anula also holds a M. Phil. in pharmacology from the University of Cambridge, in England.

Martin D. Madaus

Operating Executive, The Carlyle Group

Martin D. Madaus is a serial global healthcare CEO, board member, investor and strategy consultant with 30 years of experience in Diagnostics and Life Science. He currently works for The Carlyle Group as an Operating Executive and serves on public and private boards. He was Chairman and CEO at Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, Inc. from 2015 to 2019. Previously, Martin served as Executive Chairman of Quanterix Corporation, and as Senior Healthcare Advisor to the Carlyle Group. He was Chairman, President and CEO of Millipore Corporation from 2005 to 2010; President and CEO of Roche Diagnostics Corporation North America from 2000 to 2004; and President of Roche Diagnostics Canada. Martin received a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Munich and a PhD in Veterinary Medicine from the Veterinary School of Hanover in Germany.

Christian Magel

Founder, Venture Lane & Serial Entrepreneur

Christian Magel is the Founder of Venture Lane Boston, a curated startup hub for early-stage tech companies. As a Co-founder of amaysim Australia, he was CMO and Executive Director and helped grow the company to and beyond IPO, resulting into Australia’s largest mobile virtual network operator. Previously, Christian was Co-founder and CMO of simyo, a customer-centric challenger brand in the European mobile provider space. In Europe, Christian was European Marketing Director at Letsbuyit.com and has held senior marketing positions at ProSieben Digital Media, Entertainment Media Verlag and Club RTL. Christian is an active international Business Angel , a member of Launchpad Venture Group and mentor at Founder’s Institute and MassChallenge. Christian earned his degree “Betriebswirt” from European Business School, Oestrich Winkel, Germany.

Chandra Ramanathan

Global Head, Pharma R&D Open Innovation, Bayer

Chandra Ramanathan leads Bayer’s Open Innovation Centers (OICs) around the world where he focuses on early access to breakthrough technologies, management of strategic alliances, public private partnerships, and engagement with local ecosystems. Prior to that he served as Vice President and Head of the East Coast Innovation Center in Cambridge, MA building an innovative product portfolio with key academic partners and driving external scientific leadership. His previous roles at Bayer include the global lead for External Innovation – Life Sciences, Global Launch Team leader of Copanlisib and Head of Pipeline Marketing. Before joining Bayer, Chandra worked at Wyeth (Pfizer) and Bristol-Myers Squibb. He holds an M.B.A from the Columbia Business School, Ph.D. in Genomics/Bioinformatics, M.S. in Medicinal Chemistry and B.S. in Pharmacy.