Breakthrough Biotech Builders: Mary Lynne Hedley
The Breakthrough Biotech Builders series are curated, invitation only gatherings that convene an elite cohort of Boston’s most successful founders and executives—leaders who have turned visionary concepts into life-saving therapies. Our goal for these discussions is to provide founders & CEOs of biotech companies an opportunity to engage directly with pioneers in the field, and learn from their experience bringing a drug candidate through a successful development path to the clinic.
This session features a powerhouse of the biotech ecosystem, Mary Lynne Hedleyof Dr. Mary Lynne Hedley and will be moderated by Prof. William (Bill) Chin. We will explore the milestones of her journey, her contributions to the field, and the enduring impact of her work on the future of biotechnology and medicine.
Dr. Lynne Hedley is a serial entrepreneur who doesn't just launch companies; she architects entire ecosystems of innovation. Her journey is marked by the $5.1 billion acquisition of TESARO by GSK—one of the most significant biotech exits in recent history. For Mary Lynne, the true 'win' was bringing Zejula to thousands of women fighting ovarian cancer through her strategic leadership on the boards of Eli Lilly and the Broad Institute. As a Venture Partner at Third Rock Ventures, she continues to architect the future of medicine by proving that massive commercial success is simply a byproduct of prioritizing human lives.
About the guest speaker: Dr. Mary Lynne Hedley is a scientist by training who brings an enterprise-wide perspective to her thinking about new company formation and advancing therapeutic discovery and development. She strives to keep patients as a gravitational center in order to achieve maximum impact for all stakeholders. Mary Lynne was previously at TESARO, a company she co-founded and co-led prior to its acquisition by GSK for $5B in an all-cash transaction. Since co-founding her first company as a post-doctoral fellow, she’s held executive leadership roles in biotech and pharmaceutical companies and considers herself fortunate to have worked with amazing people to develop and commercialize several new medicines, primarily for patients living with cancer. Mary Lynne was elected to the Eli Lilly and Company Board of Directors in 2022, and is a Venture Partner at Third Rock Ventures.
About the Moderator: Prof. William (Bill) Chin is the Bertarelli Professor of Translational Medical Science and Professor of Medicine Emeritus at Harvard Medical School. He previously served as Executive Vice President for Science and Regulatory Advocacy and Chief Medical Officer at PhRMA, leading advocacy efforts with the FDA and NIH. Prior to this, he was an Executive Dean for Research at HMS and Senior Vice President for Discovery Research and Clinical Investigation at Eli Lilly, overseeing over 100 drug candidates. A Harvard-trained endocrinologist, Dr. Chin has a distinguished 25-year career at HMS, including roles as Chief of the Genetics Division at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator. He has advised Singapore for over 40 years on developing its biotechnology innovation ecosystem, serving as an active Board Member of A-STAR. In 2023, he received honorary Singapore citizenship for these contributions. Dr. Chin earned his A.B. from Columbia University and M.D. from Harvard Medical School, and has received numerous awards for research, mentorship, and leadership.
About TINS
Technology Innovation Studio (TINS) is an innovation studio that uses systems dynamics models to accelerate innovation. TINS carries out interest groups based programming and builds communities through curated events and complements this with expert-led concierge and consulting services. TINS has interests in venture creation and in doing syndicated investments in early-stage deep-tech companies.
About the Breakthrough Biotech Builders Series:
A quarterly series that aims to offer unparalleled insights into the minds of leaders who have successfully and repeatedly translated great ideas into medicines. Previous sessions were held with Dr. Steve Paul https://luma.com/5rfgvqfd and Dr. John Maraganore https://luma.com/z34kjv1p
Note: Registration fees contribute toward venue costs and complimentary refreshments.
A big thank to our founding partner Greenberg Traurig for supporting the BBB series.
About Greenberg Traurig: GT is multinational law firm, with more than 100 attorneys. The Greenberg Traurig’s Boston office provides legal services across a wide range of practice areas, including banking and finance, corporate, emerging technology, energy, environmental, gaming, governmental affairs, intellectual property, labor and employment, life sciences and medical technology, litigation, public finance, real estate, restructuring and special situations, tax, and white collar defense and investigations.