Recap: Biopharmaceutical Executive Workshop
june 14, 2025
On June 14, MSQ Ventures hosted an in-person Biopharmaceutical Executive Workshop in Boston, bringing together over 50 senior executives, investors, and business development leaders from global biopharma companies. Designed as a focused executive learning and networking session, the workshop featured six expert-led discussions exploring critical themes in cross-border dealmaking, innovation strategy, licensing, and negotiation in today's evolving global market.
The program delivered practical, strategic guidance grounded in real-world experience. Below is a summary of the key insights from each session:
Global Biopharma Landscape Overview: Seamus Jiang, Managing Director, PwC
Seamus Jiang examined the shifting global policy environment, emphasizing geopolitical tensions between the US and China alongside cross-border deal flow dynamics1. He highlighted financial performance metrics of leading pharmaceutical firms and transactional volumes, underscoring AI’s increasing influence on R&D productivity. His analysis concluded on the imperative for companies to adapt swiftly to policy shifts and emerging technological drivers.
Key takeaways:
Tech-Driven Revolution: AI and advanced computing are reshaping R&D and operations, enabling faster, more accurate decision-making and driving breakthroughs in drug discovery.
Heightened Pricing Pressure – who is paying: Global efforts—from U.S. policies like the Inflation Reduction Act to competitive market tactics—are forcing pharma to adopt leaner pricing models without sacrificing innovation.
Volatility & Wild Cards: Strategic planning must anticipate threats, geopolitical shifts and disruptive “wild cards” such as GLP-1 impacts, U.S.–China relations, healthcare reforms and emerging-market priorities.
Practical Tips to Improve Negotiation Skills: Harm-Jan Borgeld, Head of Asia Pharma Partnering, Roche
Harm-Jan Borgeld led a practical session on negotiation strategy for biopharma executives. He emphasized the importance of structured preparation, internal alignment, and decisiveness in dealmaking. The session blended real-world examples with tactical guidance, offering participants tools they can apply in licensing and cross-border negotiations.
Key takeaways:
Prepare across five key areas: objectives, counterpart intent, research, concessions, and strategy.
Align internally with your own decision-makers before negotiations begin.
Use precise (non-round) offers to improve perceived credibility.
Understand and strengthen your "Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement " throughout the negotiation process.
Make timely decisions
Clinical-Stage Deal Structures & Emerging Trends: Wendy Pan, Partner, Goodwin
Wendy Pan outlined prevalent deal structures in biopharma licensing, detailing stepwise transaction workflows and critical negotiation checkpoints from legal view. She provided exemplars illustrating how tailored schemes can align incentives and mitigate transaction risk. Additionally, she underscored the frameworks in optimizing partner collaboration and de-risking development pipelines.
Key takeaways:
Licensing deals come in many forms: in-licensing, out-licensing, platform deals, co-development, and option-to-license models.
M&A structures include public/private mergers, stock acquisitions, and carve-out transactions.
Financing structures vary by stage: equity rounds, convertible notes, and royalty financing are common tools.
Clear legal frameworks help align partner incentives and reduce downstream risks.
Each deal type serves different strategic goals—understanding structure is key to negotiating favorable terms.
Global Innovation Models & External Innovation Strategy: Alex Cogdill, Head of Strategic Initiatives, Global Business Development, Daiichi Sankyo US
Alex Cogdill delivered an executive summary on China’s biotech landscape at a global inflection point, advocating external innovation as the fastest route to competitiveness. She described five proven global innovation models and the imperative for “partner-ready” readiness in business development functions. She concluded that future industry leaders will out-partner rather than out-fund by integrating early with global science engines and embedding strategic BD capabilities from inception.
Key takeaways:
China’s biotech sector must evolve from fast following to global innovation amid funding and regulatory challenges.
External innovation accelerates validation, reduces pipeline risk, and builds access to novel platforms.
Five global models each serve strategic purposes: in-licensing, co-development, venture-enabled, tech transfer, and strategic M&A.
Partner-readiness demands novel science, a focused narrative, clean global IP, and credible leadership.
Business development should actively shape company strategy, not just respond to opportunities.
Build-Buy-Partner equation, know when to license, co-develop or invest in-house.
Best Practices for Pharma Partnerships & Cross-Border Transactions: Nikhil Mutyal, Head of Search and Evaluation, AstraZeneca
Nikhil Mutyal provided a high-level framework for forging successful partnerships, focusing on cross-border collaboration challenges and opportunity alignment. He discussed due diligence adaptations for international deals, cultural considerations in partner selection, and strategic alignment of best practices. His session concluded that adaptability and clear governance structures are essential for sustainable global pharma partnerships.
Key takeaways:
Market-Specific Due Diligence: Customize due diligence protocols to address each country’s unique regulations, IP frameworks, and logistical risks—ensuring informed decisions and stronger partner confidence with big pharma.
Cultural Fit as a Success Factor: Evaluate organizational cultures—decision-making approaches, communication norms, leadership values—to prevent integration hurdles and speed up value realization.
Governance with Built-In Agility: Implement defined roles, decision rights, and escalation mechanisms, balanced by flexible steering committees that can adapt partnerships to shifting market conditions.
Case Study Deep Dive: NewCo, Licensing, Reverse Merger & SPAC: Echo Hindle-Yang, Founder & CEO, MSQ Ventures
MSQ was proud to host the NewCo Formation & Strategic Spin-Offs session at our inaugural Executive Education Workshop for senior biopharma leaders. Echo Hindle-Yang led an engaging and practical discussion on how to build high-impact NewCos, from selecting the right assets and structuring spin-outs to aligning with investors and navigating geopolitical risks.
Key takeaways:
What makes a NewCo “fundable” in today’s market
How to time spin-offs around inflection points
Creative models for talent, capital, and partnership syndication
Why board buy-in and strategic alignment are critical from Day One
This event was made possible through the generous support of our co-host The BayHelix Group, and American Healthcare Executive Association (AHEA), and our supporting organization, IntelliPro and PwC. We are deeply grateful to each of our speakers for sharing their time and insight, and to every attendee who joined us for a day of thoughtful discussion and industry exchange. Your engagement and expertise made the program a success.