Spring Break
Life in the Life Sciences for HBS Women
Laura Singleton (MBA ’88), Special Contributor
Issue date: 1/27/03 Section: Viewpoints
Emily Levy (MBA '84) was working in a research laboratory at Yale in the early 1980s when she heard about a business called Genentech that had just gone public.
"I thought, 'Wow, there's this whole industry of science meets business.' Maybe I could get into that if I knew the business part," said Levy, who decided to apply to HBS as "an experiment."
She got in and found she indeed had a lot to learn: "My first day, I met someone who said they worked for Bain. I said, 'What's Bain?'" When she graduated, she found that the budding biotech industry wasn't sure what to do with her, either.
"I actually got offers to go back into the lab," said Levy. "There were very few companies where there were opportunities for newly-minted MBAs." Levy wound up joining Genzyme and today works as an independent consultant in biotech.
Lisa Putukian (MBA '88) had a different challenge--after undergraduate studies in administrative sciences and working as operations manager for a symphony orchestra, selling herself into biotechnology required creative thinking.
"I did a whole lot of informational interviews in which people said, 'Am I crazy? I don't have a science degree,'" said Putukian. Most people she spoke with encouragingly advised her that she could pick up the expertise needed on the job, and that her business knowledge would be valuable in the still-emergent field. After graduation, she consulted for several local biotech firms, eventually landing a fulltime role. She now serves as VP of business development at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, helping leverage the intellectual property created through the institution's research into potential business opportunities.
As both Levy and Putukian discovered, the area of life sciences, broadly defined as encompassing healthcare, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, offers opportunities for HBS alums with a variety of backgrounds.
Today, fellow female Boston-area graduates are involved with some of the leading companies and hottest entrepreneurial ventures in the field.
"I thought, 'Wow, there's this whole industry of science meets business.' Maybe I could get into that if I knew the business part," said Levy, who decided to apply to HBS as "an experiment."
She got in and found she indeed had a lot to learn: "My first day, I met someone who said they worked for Bain. I said, 'What's Bain?'" When she graduated, she found that the budding biotech industry wasn't sure what to do with her, either.
"I actually got offers to go back into the lab," said Levy. "There were very few companies where there were opportunities for newly-minted MBAs." Levy wound up joining Genzyme and today works as an independent consultant in biotech.
Lisa Putukian (MBA '88) had a different challenge--after undergraduate studies in administrative sciences and working as operations manager for a symphony orchestra, selling herself into biotechnology required creative thinking.
"I did a whole lot of informational interviews in which people said, 'Am I crazy? I don't have a science degree,'" said Putukian. Most people she spoke with encouragingly advised her that she could pick up the expertise needed on the job, and that her business knowledge would be valuable in the still-emergent field. After graduation, she consulted for several local biotech firms, eventually landing a fulltime role. She now serves as VP of business development at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, helping leverage the intellectual property created through the institution's research into potential business opportunities.
As both Levy and Putukian discovered, the area of life sciences, broadly defined as encompassing healthcare, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, offers opportunities for HBS alums with a variety of backgrounds.
Today, fellow female Boston-area graduates are involved with some of the leading companies and hottest entrepreneurial ventures in the field.
