In addition to the consultants and associates introduced here Isis Enterprise draws on the full expertise of all 70+ staff of Isis Innovation in delivering services to our clients.

OUR CONSULTANTS

Tom Hockaday, Managing Director, Isis Innovation - Tom became Managing Director of Isis Innovation Ltd in 2006, having joined Isis in 2000. Before moving to Oxford in March 2000, Tom was at Bristol University for seven years where he was Managing Director of Bristol Innovations Ltd; before that Tom worked in UCL’s research contracting section for four years. Tom was Chairman of UNICO in 2003, the UK’s technology transfer trade association. Tom was on the founding Committee of Praxis, the UK’s national training programme aimed at technology transfer professionals, from 2002 to 2005.

Dr David Baghurst, Head of Isis Enterprise Asia - David studied chemistry at the University of Oxford prior to completing a DPhil entitled "Applications of microwaves in chemical synthesis". Following two years as a fixed term lecturer in chemistry at Imperial College, London, David joined the Cookson Group as Head of the Advanced Products Group at the Cookson Technology Centre. David joined The Oxford Trust as Director of Industrial Programmes in 1996 supporting the creation and growth of high tech companies, managing technology business incubation and business networks. David joined Isis in 2002 as Head of the Physical Sciences Group working on commercialisation projects from chemistry, physics, engineering, materials and computing. David has an MBA from Warwick Business School and has sat of the board of a number of emerging technology businesses from the life and physical sciences.
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Steve Lee, Head of Isis Enterprise UK - Steve, originally an aerospace engineer, has over twenty years experience of industry and external consultancy working for companies such as BAE, Siemens and PwC. He has extensive experience of managing technology and product development projects, and of improving business processes to support innovation and product development. His experience includes working with large global businesses as well as locally based high-tech firms and SMEs. Steve is a Chartered Engineer with Masters degrees in Engineering and Business. He also has extensive experience of, and strong interests in, helping organizations to improve their innovative capabilities through effective change management and people development, supplemented by a degree in Psychology and further studies and research in organizational behaviour.
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Dr Robin Carter - Robin gained a BSc. in Chemistry from the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa and then a DPhil in Materials Science from Oxford University. He subsequently went on to be Toshiba Fellow 2005, working in the Toshiba Research and Development Centre in Kawasaki, Japan, developing nano-materials for next generation storage media. This was followed by a post-doc back in South Africa developing nano-materials for medical imaging applications and oxidation catalysts for the auto industry.

Robin then joined InnovationeXchange (IXC) UK, and gained experience in the Open Innovation process and technology transfer. He performed market research, IP portfolio analysis, IP strategy development, business development and technology scouting on behalf of clients varying in type from commercial multi-nationals to SMEs and Universities to national research Institutes.

He returned to Oxford in 2010, working within the Silk Group in the Zoology Department and facilitating technology transfer and communications between the group and third parties. Robin joined Isis Enterprise February 2012.
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Dr Costas Chryssou, Managing Consultant - Costas has over 15 years experience in the photonics and telecom industries involved in technology innovation, research and product development as well as in the creation of intellectual property. He has worked for academia and world-class multinational corporations such as Alcatel Submarine Networks. He also had the opportunity to work for a high technology start-up that span out from the University of Southampton, from its initial stages until its floatation in the AIM stock market, where he managed technology development projects for the defence and telecoms sectors. Prior to joining Isis, Costas worked for Pera Innovation as an Innovation Projects Manager where he managed and delivered business consulting services to commercial organisations and government departments specifically in operational improvement and high growth strategic management. Costas has a degree in Physics from the University of Athens and an MSc in microwaves and opto-electronics and a PhD in opto-electronics from University College London. He also gained his MBA from the School of Management at the University of Bath. Costas joined Isis Enterprise in January 2010.
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Dr Steve Cleverley, Managing Consultant - Steve is a life scientist with a PhD in Immunology gained at Imperial Cancer Research Fund, London, and commercial experience in sales, marketing and product development. He spent five years with Ciphergen BioSystems Inc, a US-based mass spectroscopy company focusing on the clinical and translation research markets, where he built and coaching a team of field application scientists and introduced several new products into Europe. He later joined Wood Mackenzie Ltd as Head of life sciences marketing, and then Touchdown Biomarketing, a small life sciences consulting organization offering strategic and tactical support to overseas biotech companies looking to enter the Europe. Steve also has experience of company formation and SME management. He has a MA in Biochemistry from the University of Oxford and gained his MBA at Henley Management School in 2008. Steve joined Isis Enterprise in January 2011.
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Dr Chris Moody, Managing Consultant - Chris’ career in technology marketing and sales management includes senior positions with Helix Technology Corporation, Kulicke & Soffa Industries and KLA-Tencor Corporation, as well as a broad consultancy background with Edgeworth, Inc. His extensive international business experience, particularly in Asia, adds to the rich knowledge base within Isis Enterprise. Chris has also served on a number of industry and corporate boards. He holds a BA from the University of the Pacific in California and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Willamette University in Oregon.
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Elena Andonova, Consultant - Elena joined Isis Enterprise in October of 2009 as a fellow from the Said Business School at Oxford University, where she had recently completed her MBA. Elena has so far been involved in several innovation projects at Isis, including one in her home country, Bulgaria. Before coming to Oxford, Elena spent over 3 years working for the capital markets division of Lehman Brothers in London as an analyst in structured credit products as well as a sales professional, involved in negotiating trading of sovereign bonds and interest rates products. Elena has experience of macroeconomics and corporate finance. Elena graduated from the American University in Bulgaria with a double major in Economics and Business Administration and graduated with honours from the Sofia high school of mathematics. Elena is also Financial Services Authority authorised.
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Eva Baltar - Eva studied Business Administration at the University of Santiago de Compostela where she also earned a Master of Science in Applied Economics, which focused on the survival analysis of Spanish innovative companies. She spent three years working as a consultant at the Technology Transfer Office of the University of Santiago de Compostela, where she was also an investment analyst at a venture capital society specializing in technology-based spin-outs.

Eva afterwards moved to the private sector and gained experience as a Deputy Finance Director, and later returned to technology transfer management at the Deputy Vice Presidency of Knowledge Transfer at CSIC, the largest public research institution in Spain. At CSIC she managed, for more than three years, R&D projects and the commercialisation of technologies through the creation of spin-outs. Eva joined Isis Enterprise in September 2011 as a Consultant for Spain and Latin America, and is based in Galicia.
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Dr Wenming Ji, Consultant - Wenming was most recently a project manager for Innovation China UK responsible for creating and managing collaborative research projects between UK and Chinese academics. With a technical background in food engineering and fermentation science Wenming has take a number of roles in sales, technology management and research. BSc, MSc and PhD qualified, Wenming was involved in research in the chemistry department in Oxford related to the spinout company Oxford Biosensors. Wenming’s role in Isis Enterprise is to build our activities in China.
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Dr Giles Kimminau, Consultant - Giles studied Physics at Jesus College, Oxford followed by a DPhil in Atomic & Laser Physics at Linacre College, Oxford. His DPhil focused on the study of shock-compressed materials by means of high powered laser experiments and supercomputing simulations. Before joining Isis Enterprise in May 2011, Giles worked in London at L.E.K. Consulting, an international strategy house, across a wide variety of industries.
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Dr Sarah Macnaughton, Senior Consultant - Sarah completed her PhD in Microbial Ecology at the University of Newcastle in 1992. After three years in post-doctoral research at Newcastle she became the senior researcher at a US environmental analysis business. Following this she joined the Centre for Environmental Biotechnology at the University of Tennessee before moving back to the UK in 2000 to join AEA Technology Environment and its Momenta operating division. At Momenta Sarah worked on a number of projects including research into bioremediation, management of a UK site for contaminated land research, a review of environmental science and training in the UK and the DTI BIOWISE Programme. Her final role at Momenta was as regional manager on the Knowledge Transfer Partnerships programme. Sarah joined Isis Enterprise in October 2006.
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Gaurav Misra, Senior Consultant - Gaurav is an expert in the commercialisation of biomedical technologies with a special interest in licensing of drugs, discovery platforms and medical devices. As a strategy consultant for large biopharmaceutical companies, he has led projects on royalty monetisation, product pricing and investment due diligence over an eight year career in the life science sector. Prior to consultancy Gaurav worked as a health economist at Eli Lilly and as a strategic planner at Bayer Healthcare.

In the early part of his career, Gaurav established and managed an IT start-up and data centre, where he gained hands-on exposure to the challenges of establishing new business ventures. Gaurav has an undergraduate honours degree in Chemistry and a biotechnology focussed MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business in Canada. He joined Isis in May 2011.
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Dr Viraj Perera, Consultant - Viraj is a biotechnologist with a PhD in Biotechnology from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University in Australia. Following a short contract as a postdoctoral researcher at RMIT, he co-founded a biotechnology start-up to develop molecular diagnostic tools for the rapid detection of respiratory bacterial pathogens. He managed the company as the CEO and is experienced in capital raising from private investors and government agencies, IP development and management, business planning, R&D project management, and start-up management. Following a successful start-up venture, Viraj joined the InnovationXchange (IXC) Australia as an innovation intermediary where he serviced clients from public and private sectors. Viraj then migrated to the UK and worked as a Business Development Manager at Warwick Ventures, the technology transfer office of the University of Warwick, where he was involved in commercialising university IP. Viraj joined Isis Enterprise in August 2010.
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Terry Pollard, Senior Consultant - Terry studied physics at the University of Bristol, and then moved into a technical business consulting role. After 4 years consulting into many different industries, he decided to study for an MBA at the Tanaka Business School, Imperial College London.Terry first joined Isis Innovation in 2003, where he worked as a project manager commercialising intellectual property from the physics, chemistry, materials and engineering departments. He was involved in the formation of several spinout companies, including Oxford Catalysts Ltd, a company that is developing specialty catalysts for the generation of clean fuels from conventional fossil fuels and renewable sources such as biomass. Oxford Catalysts floated on AIM in 2006, and Terry left Isis in early 2007 to join Oxford Catalysts, where he gained valuable experience in a business development role.
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Ya-hsin Shen, Consultant - Ya-hsin joined Isis as a Project Manager for the Technology Transfer group in 2008. She managed a portfolio of different technologies from engineering to medical products and biotechnology. Ya-hsin became a consultant for Isis Enterprise group in 2009 to develop and expand Isis Enterprise's business operations in Hong Kong, mainland China, and Taiwan. Ya-hsin holds a first class honours degree in Bioindustry Engineering from the National Taiwan University in 2001 and a Master in Electrical Engineering from the National Chiao-Tung University. She obtained an MBA degree at Said Business School, University of Oxford in 2007, and her entrepreneurial project in Said was rewarded as a runner-up for the JPMorgan Best Entrepreneurial Project. Prior to the MBA, she was a researcher in Academia Sinica and an IT Specialist at IBM Life Sciences Center of Excellence.
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Robert Swerdlow, Consultant - Robert gained a masters in Economic Analysis from the University of Nottingham in 2007. Prior to joining Isis, he briefly worked for the Institute of Cancer Research before joining LMC International Ltd as a research economist. During his time at LMC, he was responsible for writing numerous economic reports on the subject of agricultural commodity markets. Robert Joined Isis Enterprise in July 2008.
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Dr Roger Welch, Senior Consultant - Roger Welch completed his Ph.D. from the Physics Department of Warwick University in 1995. He then spent three years as a cryogenic systems design engineer working in the Oxford area. Later, Roger was involved in several sales and marketing positions dealing with new and innovative technologies closely associated with science and engineering including cryogenics, optics, optoelectronics, and vacuum technology. Roger joined Isis in September 2003.
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OUR ASSOCIATES

Kenji Aiba MBE - Kenji studied social psychology at the Kyoto Prefecutural University. Kenji joined Yagi Tsusho Limited, a Japanese trading firm, where he was engaged in export business. Kenji stayed in Australia (Sydney and Melbourne) for 6 years from 1978 as the head of company’s Australian office. After returning to Japan, Kenji joined in 1986 the British Consulate-General, Osaka (BCG) as the Senior Inward Investment Officer. In August 1995 Kenji received an MBE for his dedicated service to British Government. Kenji retired from BCG at the end of July 2011. During his 25 years of work at BCG, Kenji brought over 100 investment into the UK, including those of manufacturing and R&D by Toyota, Panasonic, Sharp, Sanyo, Denso, Takeda, Aisin Seiki, Kawasahi Heavy Ind and Fujisawa Pharmaceuticals.

Kenji joined Isis in September 2011 as the Japan Representative. Kenji has extensive knowledge of UK academia, Japanese R&D investment in the UK, and wide networks in Japan from industry to academia built up over many years.
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Dr Tim Hart - Tim is an experienced entrepreneurial business manager. Prior to his work at Isis, Tim was the founder and CEO of an environmental diagnostics University spin-out. He took the company through six rounds of private investment and managed 28 shareholders. He sold the business and is now leading Zyoxel - an Oxford spinout. Tim has obtained significant experience in a wide range of issues associated with early stage technology business development. He is a proactive supporter of entrepreneurship and business mentoring both inside and outside academia. Tim gained a PhD in Microbiology from the University of Surrey in 1997 and a BSc in Microbiology from the University of Nottingham in 1993.

Manuel Fuertes - Spanish born, British educated, Manuel has spent much of his working life in China. In 2003, while doing an internship at Rolls-Royce, he founded an engineering consultancy company with headquarters in Shanghai. He is the recipient of numerous Engineering prizes, including the UK Institution of Engineering & Technology and the Mechanical Engineers prizes. Manuel has started up six companies over the course of his career and was president of the Entrepreneurship Network while he was a student at the University of Oxford. Manuel currently sits at the investment board of several investment funds as well as supporting fund raising activities. Manuel specializes in Entrepreneurship policies and the commercialization of technology.

Dr Wolfgang Denzer - Wolfgang studied for a chemistry degree and a doctorate in natural sciences at the Free University of Berlin, Germany. He joined the Physical & Theoretical Laboratory at Oxford University as a postdoctoral researcher in 1996. Wolfgang co-authored over 40 scientific publications in chemistry, physics and zoology and is a named co-inventor on a patent in medical breath diagnostics. He held EU and Leverhulme Research Fellowships before becoming an Oxford University Enterprise Fellow in 2004.

His management experience in early stage technology development and licensing was gained as R&D Manager of Oxford Medical Diagnostics Ltd, an Oxford spin-out. Later on he led the company’s medical trials in the NHS as Clinical Trials Director. He further assisted with the business development and marketing activities of Screenworks Berlin as well as Internet Marketing Partner in Germany. Wolfgang has worked with Isis Enterprise as an Associate Consultant since April 2011. He currently shares his time between Spain, Germany and the UK.

Dr Tiancun Xiao - Tiancun earned his PhD in heterogeneous catalysis from the Chinese Academy of Science in 1993. As an Associate Professor at Shandong University in China, Tiancun spent the next six years collaborating on both petrochemical and environmental projects with Sinopec, the Shandong Provincial Government and the World Bank. Tiancun came to Oxford in 1999 and joined Malcolm Green's Wolfson Catalysis Centre as a Royal Society BP Amoco Research Fellow. Their research found commercial life as the spinout company Oxford Catalysts which achieved a listing on the London Aim Stock Exchange in 2006. Tiancun has been appointed a Visiting Professor of the Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Lecturing Professor of Eastern China University of Science and Technology and Guest Professor of Guizhou University in China. Tiancun has published over 80 papers, has filed seven patents and has received many awards for his research both in China and the UK.