We are excited to host our Annual Signature Event featuring a panel discussion on advancing women's leadership in biotech and life sciences within the Greater Los Angeles region.

Light bites and drink tickets will be provided at the post-panel discussion networking session at Perch LA.

Program

6:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.  Check-in & Networking
6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.  Panel Discussion
7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.  Networking at Perch LA

Speaker Bios

Lucy Abgaryan, PhD, MBA, CEO & Co-Founder of GrittGene Therapeutics 

Dr. Lucy Abgaryan is a scientist and entrepreneur with over 15 years of experience in drug development. She obtained her doctoral degree in biophysics and conducted postdoctoral research in the field of experimental medicine at The Scripps Research Institute. Her team’s research resulted in an FDA-approved drug, ZEPOSIA® (ozanimod), at a Scripps spin-off, Receptos. Subsequently, two more compounds laid the basis for Blackthorn biotherapeutics (now part of Neumora Therapeutics, Inc.), drug candidates for Phase 1 and 3 clinical trials. This prompted her to continue her education at UCSD and pursue an MBA in innovation and entrepreneurship. For the last five years, she has been involved in the formation of several startup companies (Biotech, digital-tech, Bioprinting, etc.) in the US, Armenia, and Israel, where she performs business strategy developments, operations, market entries, as well as regulations advisory. She founded/co-founded five science-based organizations, including Proone Labs and GrittGene Therapeutics, where she is also the CEO. Dr. Abgaryan is an adviser and/or board member for several tech/biotech companies, investment institutions & and educational organizations. Dr. Abgaryan is also a mentor and advisor for several start-up incubator/accelerator programs in southern California

Neely Kasra, President of Dahlia Consulting

Neely is the president and principal consultant of Dahlia Consulting. Neely has over 20 years of experience in operational management in the areas of program and project management, business transformation and process improvements, change management, sales, and customer satisfaction. Areas of operational expertise in cell and gene therapy and biosimilars program management, start-up of manufacturing facilities, global product launch,  development of program management offices, quality systems, nonconformance / CAPA management, regulatory inspection preparation, organizational design, and restructuring. Neely is distinguished by her ability to lead and facilitate large, complex projects with teams of cross-functional leaders globally. She has a proven ability to identify areas for development and implement measures to increase efficiency in a rapidly changing environment. ​Neely started her professional career at Amgen in the Laboratories for Quality Assurance; she supervised the design and implementation of global nonconformance management systems in manufacturing and held several leadership roles, including Chief of Staff to the VP of Corporate Engineering and Chief of Staff to VP of Corporate Manufacturing.​ Neely earned a Master of Business Administration from Pepperdine University and a bachelor's in chemistry from the University of San Diego.

Martha Lawrence, CEO & Co-Founder of AccendoWave

Martha is a Health Care Executive with more than 25 years of experience in leadership and operations with national health systems, including Hospital Corporation of America (HCA). Currently, Ms. Lawrence serves as CEO & Co-Founder of AccendoWave, a machine learning health care technology company that objectively measures and manages pain/discomfort. Previously, Ms. Lawrence served as President of Sequoia Healthcare Advisors, an advisory firm providing strategic innovation and investment advisory guidance. Earlier, Ms. Lawrence served in national account sales with Sandoz Corporation (now Novartis) and in sales and marketing roles with National Medical Enterprises (now Tenet Healthcare). Martha Lawrence has a Master of Business Administration from the University of Southern California and a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from the University of California, Los Angeles. Ms. Lawrence serves as a board member for AccendoWave, Sequoia Realty Advisors, and American Healthcare Finance.

Susan Mockus, PhD, MBA, Executive Director of Precision Biomarker Laboratories at Cedars-Sinai, Moderator

Dr. Mockus has over fifteen years of experience in life sciences, with a specialty in the commercialization of innovative, early-stage products from academic labs and non-profit organizations. She is currently the Executive Director of a new endeavor in next-generation proteomics at Cedars-Sinai Precision Biomarker Laboratories (PBL). At PBL, she oversees the strategy and execution of high-throughput proteomic services for clients in both discovery and clinical biomarker development. Dr. Mockus was previously the Director of Product Innovation & Strategic Commercialization at The Jackson Laboratory (JAX), Farmington, CT. In this position, she led the commercialization of JAX’s first software product, JAX-CKB, which is a cancer bioinformatics platform used by translational researchers, diagnostic labs, and oncologists across the globe. JAX-CKB was acquired by Genomenon, Inc. in 2024. She was integral in setting up JAX’s CLIA lab and assay offerings for molecular tumor profiling using next-generation sequencing. Her technical areas of expertise include genomics, proteomics, and interpretation of big data. Dr. Mockus received her PhD from Wake Forest University, did postdoctoral training at the University of Washington in Seattle, and earned a healthcare-focused MBA from Yale University School of Management. She is passionate about leveraging technology to accelerate the delivery of precision medicine.
 

Pricing Information

• Members/Guests: Free
• Non-members*: $25
• Group Ticket (3 people): $45
• Students: Free

*Interested in joining Women In Bio? Click here to learn more about WIB membership and gain access to our video library, mentorship opportunities, and more. 

Please read WIB's Code of Conduct, In-Person Event Waiver, and Refund Policy.

Note: A confirmation email will be sent after registration has been completed. 

Maximum Capacity

100

Parking Information
Parking is free for all attendees at the Deloitte building.

Sponsor