Founding General Partner Helps Scientists Build Companies

Name: Elena Itskovich (she/her)

PhD: Stem Cell Biology, University of Cambridge, 2017

What was your main area of research?

During my PhD, I studied the role of epigenetic regulation (modification of DNA and chromatin that surround it) in germ cell fate decisions. In my postdoc, I wanted to get close to clinics, so I went to a translational lab at Stanford University and studied social functioning and placebo.

What is your current job?

I am the Founding General Partner at Nest Catalyst Ventures in Palo Alto, California.

I help scientists start companies, connect them to the professional network they need to build early stage life science companies and invest in these companies.

I love that I get to stay close to the frontier of science and help these discoveries to reach our lives by helping scientists to start companies.

How did you find this position? What were the career steps you took to get to where you are now?

I lead several communities of scientists and realized how frustrated they can be in academic research. On the other hand I met many founders and scientists in different roles in the industry, and could hear how much they are more content with the impact they know they are driving. I wanted to be part of that shift, built an entrepreneurship program that turned out very successful and wanted to make it more impactful by building a fund.

PhD graduate (and community manager) ➡️ PostDoc fellow (and podcast host) ➡️ volunteer in different industry projects ➡️ consultant in biotech ➡️ founders of the entrepreneurship program ➡️ founder of the fund

Why did you decide to not pursue a career in academia?

I could see more frustration than satisfaction with this career path. Also, my postdoc didn't work out as I planned it (mainly due to Covid), and I decided I didn’t want to do another one.

What advice do you have for someone getting their PhD and looking to pursue a career outside of academia?

I think one of the most important things PhD students should do is get to know the work in the industry and not just hang on to preconceptions formed by others.

Some of the ways to do that is to collaborate with a company, do consultancy projects (even as volunteer with organizations like BCBA), work with the tech transfer office and even less effort things like listening to podcasts (ours is mAcademia, but there are many more that interview scientists), go to events that bring people from the industry.

Doing these things help with many things - making you more informed about jobs in industry, creating a network for looking for a job later, increasing your awareness of gaps in the industry you can fill with a potential startup, etc.