Something’s clearly far from right in the world of business communications and deal making, and the panel, facilitated by Lubor Gaal (CBO & CFO at Circio AB) sought to impart some advice, which, like good coffee, can sometimes be bitter, but memorable.
In these difficult times, where vague feedback and polite deflections waste time and stall innovation, how can a biotech stand out when trying to gain the attention of pharma and investors? It’s important to be clear about the purpose of the meeting, when to follow up and provide updates. At the heart of surviving the churn is a clear communication strategy. Let’s cut to the chase!
Know your audience
Jack Castle (CBO, Ochre Bio) advised along the classic lines of ‘know your audience’ – and tailor your presentation appropriately. Find out what the person you’ll be speaking to has as their priorities and address those in your pitch. Be clear on what you are looking for (such as a license, an investment) and regularly communicate your successful milestones.
Peter Llewellyn-Davies (Founder & CEO of ACCELLERATE Partners) makes use of a handy mnemonic to increase success in pitching, which is SISTM. First up, the Science must be excellent, but also translatable. Second, the ‘I’ is for IP – make sure you have something solid to say there. Then, the second S is for Strategy: how are you going to get a commercial idea out of a research idea? T is for Team, which must look compelling and who must know enough about the technology and opportunity to sell the idea to investors. Last, and with a theatrical flourish, is M for Magic – about how you bring across the passion and the magic of the approach you’re developing.
Be aware of the competition and listen to feedback
Looking at things from the other side of the deal-making table, Anta Gkelou (Partner at Sofinnova Partners) talked about how a distinct value proposition needs to have several core elements, which are covered in breadth and depth. A proposal needs to show competitive intelligence and that the company is on top of the competition globally including from countries that we’re not used to looking at so closely. It needs to have a strategy to derisk the scientific and clinical elements and include very specific milestones. Then, it needs to be realistic on the exit potential, and what that is, and how much investment is needed to reach the most important value inflexion point.
Fiona MacLaughlin (Principal Venture Investment, Investor, at Johnson & Johson Innovation) chimed in each corporate has different needs, so try and find out what those gaps are, which can help engineer a hook to engage with. Plus, strategies change all the time in corporate, so best to go out to many. A helpful corporate may provide some valuable ‘intellectual nuggets’ into how they perceive the value of your proposition, even if they don’t take it forward. As Anta added, such early corporate interactions can help reduce the risk of building a package that is no longer relevant. Fiona added that it helps to be open for dialogue and spend time listening and taking feedback on board.
Finding a Champion within the Organisation is Key
Lubor advised to prepare for a meeting with a pharma BD team as if going for a job interview. It’s also about empathy and understanding the information that they need from you to make a decision.
So should you knock on the top door, or try lower down? At VCs, Anta highlighted that whilst dialogue with a partner sure helps, associate partners see more opportunities, and part of their role is to facilitate interactions. She felt it was more important to be saying the right things, and having ready answers to difficult, but predictable, questions, than to worry about the exact person to talk to within the fund. Such questions include ones around what else is out there that is like what you have, and what’s coming next?
Fiona commented on the importance of finding someone within a big organization who can act as your champion, as they should know the internal channels better, and the conversations that need to be navigated, and who to have them with and when. Jack added that such a champion can be very helpful to drive forward your business case within pharma.
But how to find such a champion asked Peter? What’s the key to that? Jack felt it was a case of showcasing high quality science and meeting supportive scientific champions at congresses. So, be thoughtful as to where key people might be found, such as at events, and how to build a relationship there, which might be supported by members of the company’s board.
Timing may not be everything
What about timing asked Lubor? When’s best to go out with your story, and does it need to be fully polished? Jack reckoned you can try telling some data and seeing what feedback you secure, as that’s a good way to have an introductory conversation with a potential partner and formulate a sense of what they want to engage on. Once you have that, you can ask some more directive questions. Anta provided the insight that the more mature the company, the more polished the story needs to be and that an investor understands that at seed stage the story may not completely established, as the rationale is being built.
As you progress up to Series A and B, you’ll need even more crisp differentiation, and a good rationale as to why it would be worth starting a journey with you. As things change, perhaps as a competitor drug is approved or fails in clinical trials, you’ll have to adjust your story: there will always be changes to be made to the messaging! Through this continuing dialogue and by communicating regular updates, you’ll build a relationship based on trust with your potential partner or investor. Most deals come from a longer-term relationship and are not formed overnight, and it is fine for a biotech to approach an investor even though they are not looking to raise money right now. As Fiona added, it’s possible to have the wrong conversation at the wrong time, so by having regular conversations, and not over-selling, there’s the potential to flip one of those on the hook when the timing has come right. Fiona commented that in the case of corporate venture funds they often invest in earlier stage deals and tee those up for the business development team. For those companies who have investors, Fiona also advised companies to use their current investor syndicate to of the investor base to enable conversations with other syndicate members, so make use of those relationships.
Teeing up the next communication
Attending events where you can tee up conversations at subsequent events creates a cadence for regular communication, just as BIO-Europe in the autumn does for JP Morgan / Biotech Showcase week in January. News flow is also important and that includes general news or from peer companies, as it presents a communication opportunity to pick out important read-outs and (re)position your company in that context.
Anta added that whilst data is important, investors are more milestone driven and want to understand whether the company has the means to get to the next inflection point. The types of milestones that will be of interest are next steps towards IND readiness, establishing your CMC process or the completion of early tox studies.
Rounding out this part of the conversation, Lubor added it’s vital to understand that the business development person is your ally – they want to make deals happen, and as it is incredibly tough to do that, make their lives easier – distil down the story so it is easy to digest, the USP is clear, the ask is clear, and who you are (and why you should be trusted) is clear. Clarity of communications gets deals done.
Anta added that it was important to make sure your pitch includes one killer stat or figure that sums up the opportunity. Investors are not looking to be inundated with multiple scientific papers, they want to understand what makes your company investable in about the same time than it takes to drink a coffee, with no cream or sugar!