The Biotech Startups Podcast 🧬 Bryan Dechairo - Sherlock Biosciences - Part 3 | Assurex’s Journey From Garage to GeneSight | Keeping a Team Together Through the M&A Process | Building a Diagnostics Company During Covid | What Sherlock & Netflix Have in Common
May 8, 2024
50:28
As a podcast listener, you can redeem exclusive discounts with a growing list of biotech vendors and get $500 off your first equipment lease by using promo code “TBSP” on https://www.excedr.com/rewards.
Part 3 of 3.
My guest for this week’s episode is Bryan Dechairo, President, CEO, and Director at Sherlock Biosciences, an innovative biotech company that is enabling the democratization and decentralization of diagnostic testing to personalize healthcare and make an impact on global health.
My guest for this week’s episode is Bryan Dechairo, President, CEO, and Director at Sherlock Biosciences, an innovative biotech company that is enabling the democratization and decentralization of diagnostic testing to personalize healthcare and make an impact on global health.
Before Sherlock, and most recently, Bryan was Executive VP at Myriad Genetics and CSO and CMO at Assurex Health. His extensive career spans over two decades and also includes prominent positions at Medco Health, Pfizer, Oxagen, Sequana Therapeutics, and Roche. Bryan's vast experience working at both startups and Fortune 500 companies gives him unique insights that any entrepreneur can benefit from.
Join us this week and hear about:
- Scaling Assurex Health out of a garage to developing a best-in-class pharmacogenomic test, GeneSight
- Working for multiple companies that had gone through the M&A process
- Developing Sherlock Biosciences’s home diagnostics test during Covid-19
- Tips and advice to other CEOs on how to raise capital in a challenging economic environment
- And much more!
Please enjoy my conversation with Bryan Dechairo.
Find Our Guest, Bryan Dechairo, at these links:
Find Our Host, Jon Chee, at these links:
Timestamps:
00:28 Intro and episode overview
01:23 Getting acquired by Express Scripts and dealing with new ownership
03:34 Working on a small team that got their start out of a garage and helping them scale
06:23 Pitfalls to avoid while scaling your business and other tips for growing companies
07:47 Why scientists do not always make the best biotech CEO's and the value of having a diverse knowledge base
11:56 Myriad Genetics's acquisition of Assurex and keeping his team together through the M&A process
15:60 Leaving Myriad Genetics and figuring out why Sherlock Biosciences was the right move
19:26 What the home diagnostics environment was like during Covid
22:20 Deciding on what would be the first over-the-counter test Sherlock would focus on
25:15 Adapting diagnostic testing to the modern convenience world we live in today
27:37 Why did this brilliant idea take so long to get to where it is today?
31:12 Comparing the system used to distribute at-home Covid tests with Sherlock's and how they improved on it
32:56 Tips for other business owners on how to develop and maintain your company's talent
35:59 Advice for raising capital while in lean economic environments from a biotech CEO's point of view
40:17 Sherlock Biosciences acquisition of Sense Biodetection and why the move made sense
43:45 What on the horizon for Sherlock Biosciences and what Sherlock and Netflix have in common
47:18 Shout outs, thank you's, and advice to younger Bryan
48:38 Outro
Social & Website
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/excedr/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@excedr
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/excedr_inc
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ExcedrInc
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/excedr
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@excedr
Podcast Website: https://www.thebiotechstartupspodcast.com/
Enriched Notes:
Topics Mentioned:
Assurex/GeneSight https://genesight.com/
Myriad Genetics https://myriad.com/
Sherlock Biosciences https://sherlock.bio/
Biotech Startup Support https://www.excedr.com/resources-category/biotech-startup-support
Biotech & Big Pharma Partnerships https://www.excedr.com/blog/how-biotech-partnerships-support-research
Marketing and Sales Strategies for Startups https://www.excedr.com/blog/marketing-sales-strategies-for-biotechs
Staffing Your Startup https://www.excedr.com/blog/staffing-your-startup
How to Get Funding for Lab Research https://www.excedr.com/blog/how-to-get-funding-for-lab-research
What is a C-Corp & Why Do Investors Prefer it? https://www.excedr.com/resources/c-corp-investors-prefer
How to Write a Business Plan for Your Biotech Startup https://www.excedr.com/resources/how-to-write-a-business-plan-for-biotechs
People Mentioned:
Julie Garlikov https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliegarlikov/
Dale Muzzey https://www.linkedin.com/in/dale-muzzey-70512889
Andrew Marshak https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-marshak/
Mark Capone https://www.linkedin.com/in/markcapone/
The Biotech Startups Podcast gives you a front-row seat to the business and science of building a biotech. Hosted by Jon Chee, CEO of Excedr, the show features honest conversations with founders, execs, and investors about their work, their companies, and how they got there. From scientific breakthroughs to startup lessons, each episode explores what it really takes to grow a life science company—from pre-seed to IPO.