Jeff Marsh is Managing Partner of Odgers Berndtson’s Interim and Professional Search Practice. Joanne McMullin is a Partner in Odgers Berndtson’s Life Sciences Practice. They frequently collaborate on integrated leadership solutions.
Leadership Gaps Are Slowing Innovation
Canada’s life sciences sector is a powerhouse of research, ingenuity, and potential. But great ideas alone aren’t enough. Scaling innovation into commercial success requires experienced leadership—and today, finding that leadership is harder than ever.
Whether you're a global multinational, a scaling medtech organization, or an early-stage biotech venture, organizations across the country are facing the same strategic challenge: how to access the right executive talent at the right moment in their growth journey. And how to do it without compromising speed, vision, or momentum.
As partners at Odgers Berndtson, an Integrated Leadership Advisory Firm, we work alongside executive leaders to help them think bigger and more strategically about talent. Our role isn’t just to fill positions—it’s to help CEOs, boards, and founders anticipate the leadership they’ll need before the inflection point arrives.
Fueling Life Sciences Growth: Toronto’s Capital Ecosystem
8:00 - 10:15 AM
Strategic Talent: More Than a Search
Too often, leadership planning happens reactively. A company hits a roadblock—or an opportunity—and suddenly scrambles to find someone who can “fix it.” But in today’s complex, fast-moving ecosystem, tactical responses alone won’t cut it.
The organizations that thrive are the ones that take a more expansive view of leadership. That means exploring a range of solutions—from permanent executive searches to project-based, fractional, and interim support—based on the situation and the stage of growth.
This is not about defaulting to short-term fixes. It’s about unlocking long-term value with the right kind of leadership at the right time.
A Sector—and a Country—at an Inflection Point
Canadian life sciences firms are standing on the edge of global opportunity. Our sector is rich in innovation, but that innovation needs leadership to truly take flight. That’s why now is the time to bet on our talent strategy and think beyond the traditional hire.
This isn’t about shortcuts—it’s about being bold. Bold enough to plan ahead. Bold enough to bring in the leadership you really need. And bold enough to view leadership not just as a title, but as a lever for growth.
Let’s stop seeing talent gaps as a constraint—and start seeing them as a chance to think differently, act faster, and lead smarter.
The Winning Formula
Ontario’s life sciences sector is already a major driver of economic growth. With more than 3,500 companies, 88,000 skilled workers, and $15 billion in annual GDP, the foundation is strong.
Situational Expertise, Strategic Impact
When timelines tighten and stakes rise, experience matters. We’ve seen companies with breakthrough technologies stall not because of science, but because they didn’t have someone who had done it before—someone who had navigated scale, regulatory environments, global markets, or capital raises.
One client with an R&D lab and a strong distribution arm suddenly found themselves at a crossroads: they had a clear path to commercialize their IP and scale internationally. But making that leap wasn't just about vision—it demanded execution at a different level. We brought in an interim leader with a track record of scaling businesses at pace. This wasn’t a placeholder; it was a deliberate overhire. They knew how to structure for global growth, avoid predictable pitfalls, and align teams around a fast-moving strategy. Their impact wasn’t just in bridging a gap—it was in building the right foundation for the permanent hire who would follow, setting them up to grow with discipline and durability.
Sometimes that leader joins full-time. Other times, a fractional or interim executive steps in with purpose-built expertise to accelerate through the challenge—or opportunity—at hand. What matters most is that companies don’t delay leadership decisions waiting for the “perfect” hire. Smart leaders get creative and act decisively.
