Naji Gehchan: Hello, leaders of the world. Welcome to “Spread Love in Organizations”, a podcast for purpose-driven healthcare leaders, striving to make life better around the world by leading their teams with genuine care, servant leadership, and love.
Naji Gehchan: Welcome to Spread Love in Organizations, the healthcare leadership podcast, where we explore leadership with purpose. I’m Naji, your host, joined today by Jason Bhardwaj, an experienced life science executive with a broad background leading in startups and 20 years working in healthcare. Currently, Jason is the CEO of Nova and Cora, developing a recombinant protein-based treatment for DEB, Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa.
Prior to this, Jason served for six years as CEO of another dermatology focused biotech. Jason has led or advised across a wide range of technologies, as well as indications in healthcare. Prior to life sciences startups, Jason studied biomedical engineering at Duke, received a master’s degree in business from Harvard and developed a decade of foundational experience in consulting, working with some of the largest healthcare innovators on a full functional suite of critical challenges.
Jason and his family are my neighbors here in Uten, Massachusetts, where he is involved in the community as a soccer coach, marathon runner, and most recently via a bid for the school committee. Jason, it’s so good to see you again and have you with me today.
Jason Bhardwaj: Thank you so much for having me. I’m excited.
Naji Gehchan: I’d love for us to hear more about your personal story. What’s behind the lines of your journey from biomedical engineering to consulting and now being a CEO of a biotech. Thanks.
Jason Bhardwaj: Yeah. Where to begin? I mean, I, I think, um, Healthcare and science have been a theme for me for a very, very long time, I think both by natural affinity.
But, you know, my, uh, both my parents studied engineering. Um, my mom was a mechanical engineer. She studied at Rice is where she met my dad, who was a PhD in material science there. And, um, so I, you know, I think that there was an infusion of that. You know, scientific thinking into our house, like we had the white board above the dining room and my dad would give us lectures when he came home, like that type of thing.
So that’s, that’s definitely the environment. And so, um, you know, I think there was a, a number of, I loved chemistry, uh, that was probably my favorite subject in high school. Um, and then when I got to, um, thinking about undergraduate institutions, et cetera, You know, Duke was really on my radar for biomedical engineering, and something had started to clip for me at that stage around biology, life sciences, and medicine, you know, and all those things at that naive stage for me were kind of on the table, and it felt like a good place to go and kind of figure it out.
Um, and so that, that was an important juncture for me, and I did think about pursuing medicine, and not really sure I had a great framework at that stage in my life for making the decision, but decided, you No, I wanted to point more towards an intersection of business and science. And so I studied biomedical engineering and economics, you know, uh, some institutions, uh, don’t have a quote unquote vocational business program.
Um, so that was my way of sort of, uh, doing, doing. That intersection academically as they were and, um, and then strategy consulting was meant to be like sort of a few year gig to figure out where to land in the health care ecosystem and I loved it and it ended up being more like a decade. But I always did have that sort of I want to build something type of an itch.
Um, and I, I did feel like the learning was there and I just love the people. Where I was working at Bain and, um, and so, you know, that’s, that’s what kept me there for ultimately bookends, a full decade. And finally, it was one of these, like, if I don’t push myself out of the nest now, like, when is it going to ever happen?
And, and so started, um, doing smaller, uh, healthcare, uh, ultimately life focus, life science focused startups. Um, and now it’s been a decade of doing that. And I’ve, I’ve just loved it. Um, and I, and I wouldn’t go back, but. The training and the exposure was really fantastic.
Naji Gehchan: Well, thanks for sharing, Jason.
What’s your biggest learning? As you said, now you’ve been on a decade building team, building biotech, being the CEO. What is your biggest learning through the past years of doing that?
Jason Bhardwaj: Yeah, I mean, there’s so many learnings. I mean, maybe to this, you know, discussion we’re just having of finding your path and what is it that you want to do?
You know, I think, um, There’s something to life science startups or, you know, or, or, you know, um, building a project from, from early stages. That, uh, for me personally, and I think everyone has their own personal index for, you know, gratification, satisfaction, et cetera. But the wins feel really big when you start at these stages and you bring something from, you remember when it was sketch on a napkin ish.
And, and so when you get the milestones like, um, IND moving forward into clinic. Or, you know, a successful readout from a clinical study or anything in between, you know, they, they feel really big. Um, and so that personally for me has been a real learning of, uh, find your place in the ecosystem that has that right balance of effort and gratification.
And look. There are losses too and you feel those too and you have to be able to make those, that kind of, um, arc work for you personally. And then I get why some people prefer a different, you know, portfolio approach or something like that. But for me, uh, that was a big learning is find your place in the ecosystem where you can add value.
And it really is a personal fit for your, for, you know, how you derive satisfaction.
Naji Gehchan: And it certainly is, as you said, humbling and gratifying at the same time, as you know, like this is something I also do. And. As you were speaking, like, each one of those myostones is so important and so big, and at the end of the day, you’re bringing hope and hopefully a new medicine to patients as each one of those myostones is hit, and as you take this molecule, From a piece of paper and to the bench preclinical and all those faces as we both know from, from that, um, experience, as you said, like building a project, building a company, uh, I’d love to hear more about your people experience while building those companies.
How do you think about building a team in a biotech to develop those breakthrough medications?
Jason Bhardwaj: Yeah. Um, the projects that I’ve worked on have been at the stage and scale as independent startups that we’ve had a very virtual model. Um, and so I think it really in that model, it really amplifies the importance of what you’re just describing of.
people decisions. Um, and so both of these, um, companies, you know, the one, the team I’m building now, and we’ve, we’ve just started hiring the core team. Um, and then the last company, you know, um, single digit size core teams. And as anyone who’s in the space knows, then you, you have a sort of portfolio of advisors, contractors, and other folks getting involved, CROs, et cetera, um, to augment that.
And so, you know, on both fronts, the, the sort of core team and The folks that you build around that, um, in that type of a setting that the people decisions are so, so important. Um, because, you know, if you have a sort of a weak leg of the stool, so to speak, or, you know, you really feel that, especially as a leader, um, you end up spending in order when there are weak legs of the stool, you end up spending way too much time supporting the leg instead of You know, kind of overall strategy and moving things forward.
And so that, that I think is the key lesson, especially when, when you’re architected that way, that the core is really important. And then, you know, similarly, though, I think, um, really making sure that you have the right partners. And for that, again, it’s a little bit like placing the ecosystem dependent.
There are partners who are really high capability that, um, are not geared to work with smaller stage startup entrepreneur. And so really, um, depending on the type of partnership, et cetera, like, um, having a, a, um, a sense of. What your criteria are and making those decisions, um, appropriately are really important as well.
You know, if you commit to a CRO for your key study and you just find that they aren’t nimble enough for the particular areas of your disease state or recruiting or organizing the sites, uh, it can be really, really painful to sort of switch gears.
Naji Gehchan: So I want to ask one more question about the core team, as you said, like, it’s hard to build a core team, uh, hard to hire the right people.
So how do you think about this as you’re hiring? Is it something, is there like one philosophy that you have throughout the past decade on hiring the winning team, uh, for, to help you build this, the biotech that you’re building?
Jason Bhardwaj: Yeah, I I’m gonna have to think about that. I mean, I the ones philosophy. It’s been so situational.
Um, you know, I’ll just give the example of how just having hired our first team member for a new team, you know, um, it for us right now. Manufacturing is the key. And so, you know, I think the framework and we were maybe it’s it’s a positive time to be hiring in the market, but we had some really great candidates.
And so, you know, really trying for that particular linchpin role for us, balancing the sort of, you know, the program management have because there’s so many resources. This role is going to need to direct versus, um, the thought leadership component, which is really do they have. Um, the requisite detailed expertise in the functional areas that really, really matter, you know, for us, it was downstream in particular, uh, development, uh, uh, for, for CMC of a recombinant protein, you know, that what I, what I do sort of ascribe to is that, you know, aphorism of, If you hire a B player, they hire C players, you know, so we really, really, um, I put an inordinate amount of time on the hiring process.
If there’s a rule there, it’s like, anytime I feel like I’m spending way too much time on, you know, the process or or number of candidates or, you know, orchestrating, you know, what my questions are, the interview versus my academic collaborator versus our CMC advisor. We put a ton of time and effort into that.
I’m glad we did. You know what I mean? Like the returns felt. So I don’t know that there was really, um, like a philosophy as much as a, like, making those investments to really have as high quality of processes you can and, and, and being very clear on what the particularities of that particular role are to, to, to make sure it, um, it, the person is set up to, to be the linchpin we need them to be, I think was really key.
Naji Gehchan: Awesome. Uh, another area you’re passionate about, uh, and as you were talking about your, uh, your dad,
I’m going to ask again the question. I’m not sure if you heard it, but there was. Okay, another area you’re passionate about, Jason, and as you were talking about your dad giving lectures, it reminded me probably of something you are working on currently. You’re passionate about community and education, too, and this is something you said from your very early beginning you’ve been very passionate about.
Can you tell us a little bit more about your work and involvement there, too? Because I feel everything is kind of interlinked at the end of the day.
Jason Bhardwaj: Yeah, yeah, that’s well, let me first address the analogy and then, uh, the specifics. So, um, yeah, I really do think that, um, a whatever it is a sort of learning mindset is so key to especially in our role and frame of work.
I mean, this is not, um, producing widgets. There is so much. Art and high minded science into what we’re doing and uncertainty. And so there is a lot of, you know, we’re students in life sciences. Absolutely. Um, yes, I, I do have, as you alluded to in the introduction, a new, um, side project, which is, um, school committee, um, bid here in Newton and Newton, Massachusetts and, um, you know, I think, yeah, absolutely.
There’s a lot of motivations for that. The biggest, of course, is having two elementary school kids, um, and then, which, um, many of my parents share that, and so, so that’s the skin in the game, and but I think, um, yes, there, there’s a lot of family history, not only what I mentioned with, um, you know, the lectures at dinner, but my grandmother was a, um, elementary school teacher and then principal.
Um, my mother went into, uh, teaching later in her career, um, English as a second language with my brothers in, uh, pre kindergarten education, and, you know, I, I didn’t pursue those paths, but I do, I do have a little bit of the bug. And so this maybe felt like a way to scratch an itch, I guess. Um, and not just that being involved in education, but sort of giving back in some mission oriented way.
Um, it sort of kind of coalesced for me. Um, and yeah, I was in between roles, uh, and had already been involved both in the community as a coach and other ways. a room parent and involved in the schools, but really started volunteering and signing up for whatever I could. And a buddy of mine was like, you, I think I was, you know, philosophizing around the soapbox about an issue.
And it was like, you should run for school committee. And my initial reaction was that’s crazy, but it sort of started a process. Um, that’s led to a few weeks ago, formally announcing and have. wonderful support from, you know, uh, other parents in the community who are helping me. So I’ve, I’ve learned so much.
Think about, uh, you know, ways to learn. I’ve learned so much about, um, schooling and the history of Ed, of Newton, which is a very, very rich history of education. The twists and turns that led us to where we are today. Um, and I think it’s an exciting time to get involved. So, yeah, that’s it’s it’s a long wind up for, um, an election in November of next year.
But, yeah, I’ll be running for my board. We’re 3, which, um. Every ward in Newton has a rep, there are eight, and, um, the entire town votes. So it’s, uh, that’s a totally new educational experience for me as well, the political one.
Naji Gehchan: But this is, this is great, and having an impact early on, I know we talked a lot, a lot about curriculum, how this is done, and being involved in the community and, and the education piece.
I know you’re big on steam, obviously. Uh, I, you know, like this is great to see this involvement from you and what you’re trying to achieve for, uh, for our community. Obviously I’m biased. My kids are also in the, uh, the Newton public school. So, so this is, uh, something also very close to my heart. Uh, and it’s great to see people like you helping out, uh, with the educational system.
Uh, I would love now to move. To, um, a section where I’m going to give you a word and I would love your first reaction to it.
Jason Bhardwaj: Right. So the
Naji Gehchan: first, the first one is leadership.
Jason Bhardwaj: Yeah. Leadership. I think, uh, my reaction is it is so multifaceted and it means so many different things. So we all can be leaders, but just finding a way to have an impact, to collaborate, um, to, to, to have an idea and move it forward.
I mean, that’s leadership.
What about biotech? Biotech. I think biotech, um, it just jumps off the page as exciting science and a way to help people. Um, we have so many unsolved problems in the world, medically, and it’s really just moving forward so fast now. I just find so much constant excitement from hearing what’s happening in the ecosystem.
Naji Gehchan: The third one is about education. STEAM.
Jason Bhardwaj: Yes. You know, I Steam gets talked about the most with gender imbalances, etc. But to me, I think that that connects to me with just excitement. Um, you know, science. And math and engineering. I mean, obviously, these were what drove a lot of my academic interest, etc. But I, I think, um, they shouldn’t be esoteric.
They should be approachable and fun and dynamic. And that’s how the school system should continue to approach them. And yes, find ways to broaden it to make sure it’s accessible to everyone of of all segments. I think, especially here in Boston, it’s easy to say that. I mean, we’re such an. Mecca for, um, steam based careers.
And so why not make sure we’re, we’re providing the, the, um, the, the best, um, seeding ground for, for the future innovators. What about spread love and organizations? Yes. Well, spread love. I I’ve now become more acquainted and I think. Uh, the, the name is beautiful and, um, you know, I think, um, spreading insights and connecting with people who are passionate about what they do is, is what an amazing way, um, to, to spread the love.
So, so I, I’m very honored to be, to be, uh, part, a part of the, now the, the volume of, of cool insights and learnings.
Naji Gehchan: Any final word of wisdom, Jason, for leaders around the world?
Jason Bhardwaj: Yeah, I, I think, um,
what to say, I, I, um, I think there’s so many different ways to go out and be a leader and make a difference back to my comments on the versatility of leadership. And so I think finding that way you want to make an impact, perhaps that’s attuned to, like we were saying, you know, your emotional profile. And and where you are most excited about making a difference.
You know, I think that’s where, in my opinion, you know, folks of abilities in all different spheres will have their greatest impact because you really like if you’ve got energy for something, um, that’s where it’s going to jump off the page. And I certainly feel that way with biotech and in my current line of work.
But maybe just bridging briefly back over to the school stuff. I mean, my wife noticed it with me, you know, for me, it was as I, the buddy was like, should you run for the school committee? And I was sitting there in my bed at 1130 at night. Watching old school committee meetings at 1. 5x, you know, like on, on, on Newton TV, it’s like, man, I really have energy for this.
It’s not work. It’s like, it’s, it’s fun. It’s play in his, you know, with a serious tone to that. And, um, and so I think finding that, that energy as you, you know, draw the arc of your career, I think is, is really great. Um, fun and important and will be ultimately how people find their greatest impact.
Naji Gehchan: Yes, and how you framed it is so powerful.
Find the way you want to make a difference. And there’s no small difference, right? And this is what you’re, what we’re talking about here. The difference in your community from education to healthcare. And obviously ultimately what you’re doing in the biotech world, bringing innovations to patients. So thanks again for being with me today, sharing.
your experiences and also what your, uh, all the impact that you’re trying to bring across Newton and beyond. Uh, it’s been a real pleasure to have you with me today, Jason. Thank you. Fantastic. Thank you so much, Naji. Really appreciate it. Thanks for listening to the show. For more episodes, make sure to subscribe to spreadloveio.
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Naji Gehchan: Thank you all for listening to SpreadLove in Organizations podcast. Drop us a review on your preferred podcast platform
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