Unforeseen Impact of a Pandemic on the RTP Scientific Industry

Come join the conversation with panelists from the RTP scientific industry to discuss changes and challenges brought on by the pandemic.\

This will be a panel Discussion with speakers from RTP in a diverse breadth of the scientific industry. Topics discussed include how the industry has been affected by the pandemic; what pivots the NC scientific sector has had to make including operational changes, facility changes, fundraising changes, etc; the stories and unique challenges local companies have overcome.

Panelists

Heather Hudson, Ph.D., is Head of Commercial for Pairwise, leads the Vegetable category and is enthusiastically preparing for our first product launch. Previously, Heather was Head of R&D and led the innovation pipeline for the Refrigerated Businesses for Kraft Heinz. Notable food innovations launched under Heather's leadership include Ore Ida Just Crack an Egg and the clean label renovation of the Oscar Mayer hotdog portfolio. Heather holds a Ph.D. from North Carolina State University in Food, Bioprocessing, and Nutrition Science, an MBA from The University of Southern California, and a BS in Nutrition from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Outside of work, Heather is a food adventurer and culinary addict who is interested in all food experiences, refined and some less so.

Tricia Jennings currently serves as the Manager of Vector Manufacturing at bluebird bio. bluebird bio is a biotechnology company committed to developing potentially transformative gene therapies for severe genetic diseases and T cell-based immunotherapies for cancer. Prior to bluebird, she was the Bioprocessing Manager at Humacyte and worked at Novartis/Seqirus in roles of increasing responsibility. Tricia obtained her BS in Biological Sciences, minor in Genetics from North Carolina State University.

Jeffrey Torres is the Quality Assurance Manager at Align Technology, and is passionate about efficiency in QA systems engineering. Jeffrey previously served as a Data Integrity Champion at Merck and adapted above-site DI Center of Excellence plans and priorities to address resource and operational challenges at the Durham site. Jeffrey has an extensive knowledge of quality assurance in the medical device industry and biotechnology sector in North Carolina. Jeffrey holds an MBA in Finance from North Carolina State University, and a BS in Computer and Systems Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.