Wilson Center Speaker Series: Marian Nakada on Combining Entrepreneurship and Biotech 3/21

03/01/2024
By Patricia Morena

The Wilson Center invites faculty and students to attend the Wilson Center Speaker Series event with Marian Nakada, Ph.D., Vice President Venture Investments, Johnson & Johnson Innovation. Marian will be sharing her entrepreneurial journey on Thursday March 21, 3:30 p.m. at Saab ETIC, with a reception immediately following from 5 to 6 p.m.

The discussion will be an insight into how Marian has been able to navigate the world of entrepreneurship, innovation and corporate venture capital in the biotech industry. Students can learn first-hand how Marian combined her scientific training with business to build a successful career in biotech and to see if that is something they would like to pursue.
There will be a reception at Saab ETIC immediately following the discussion.

Wilson Center Distinguished Speaker Series
Date: March 21, 2024
Time: 3:30 – 4:45 p.m., Reception 5 – 6 p.m.
Location: Saab ETIC, 40 University Ave., Lowell, MA, 01854
Register now. 

Marian Nakada has more than30 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, starting her career at the laboratory bench at Centocor and moving to a research leadership role before Centocor’s acquisition by Johnson & Johnson. She later transitioned to Janssen business development and eventually joined JJDC in 2013.

Marian has an A.B. in Biology from Harvard and a Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Pennsylvania. She has authored 62 peer reviewed publications and 14 book chapters and is a past reviewer for the NIH Pharmacology Study Section.

She is currently on the Boards of Navitor and a stealth NewCo and is a Board Observer for ONL Therapeutics, Aetion, Iterative Health, and Rome.

Marian is also on the Board of the New England Venture Capital Association and co-founder of IgniteVC where she is working to champion change through its diversity & inclusion efforts. Outside work, Marian is a Board Member at InnerCity Weightlifting whose mission is to amplify the voice and agency of people who have been most impacted by systemic racism and mass incarceration.