Newswise — This month, the famed Waldorf Astoria in New York City will host the 15th Annual BIO CEO & Investor Conference—the largest independent investor conference focused on established and emerging publicly traded biotech companies. Every year, the meeting attracts senior biotech executives, institutional investors and industry analysts, to swap ideas on the future investment landscape of the biotech industry.
Although every biotech CEO has ideas on how to drive their specific company toward success, there are some general insights that new CEOs in this space ought to keep in mind. Dr. Lindsay A. Rosenwald, a founding partner at Opus Point Partners in New York City and a major biotech investor, offers the following eight tips:
• Establish a well-defined plan for growth. What are your milestones for the next quarter? The next year? The next five years? Being able to detail where you want to be within a specific time frame tells investors that you are focused and organized.
• Set up a stellar management team. You can’t run the whole show yourself. Be smart enough to know what your limitations are, and recruit individuals to the C-suite who have the skills you lack, who have experience launching new drugs, and who are as dedicated as you are to the company’s success.
• Deliver credible news developments on a timely basis. A well-written, informative press release reporting positive results is a powerful tool for getting investors’ attention. Disseminate your news by utilizing traditional print, broadcast and “new” media outlets.
• Give investors the reasons “why” they should buy. Build a case that will get someone sufficiently comfortable with your company to justify an investment. Think of the factors that support your company’s growth outlook and be prepared to communicate them.
• Know your competition. Get acquainted with all the companies that are developing drugs in your disease category. Learn as much as you can about them—listen to their earnings reports and read their news—and be prepared to share this information with investors, who are bound to ask about it.
• Encourage two-way communication. Don’t rush when telling your story; to create the best possible rapport with investors, let them speak. Ask them what other companies they’ve been recommending—you can often learn more about the investor this way.
• Always be closing. If an investor says he or she isn’t interested in your company, think of it as an opportunity. Ask them what would need to change to make them feel comfortable investing, listen closely to the answer, and apply that knowledge wisely.
• Stand by your science. Be prepared to explain to anyone who asks just how your drug or technology works. Be able to provide a lucid explanation for lay audiences and, be able to cite the relevant research articles for more sophisticated audiences.
New biotech CEOs who take these insights to heart will be much more likely to meet with long-term success, says Dr. Rosenwald. As fundamental as they might seem, they are key to a profitable business, satisfied investors and grateful consumers.
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