Sharon Semones serves as the Indiana Biosciences Research Institute's (IBRI) vice president of scientific business development. She is responsible for business development and strategic partnership activities for the Institute; developing and implementing strategies for the formation of sustaining collaborations with local, national and global biotechnology industries.
She spent almost 24 years at Eli Lilly and Company, starting a physical properties group in discovery research and then moving to various roles in external R&D ranging from global external R&D, open innovation, emerging technology, and innovation and venture science. Her responsibilities ranged from developing and managing technology portfolios and strategy to partnering with academics, nonprofits, biotechs, startups and venture capital firms to foster and develop novel business models.
Semones has identified and executed more than 300 deals in her career ranging from sponsored research, material transfer agreements, grant funding, in-licensing, strategic collaborations, venture fund investments and direct investments.