"Big Pharma has Created Wealth, While Biotech has Destroyed Wealth"

Feb. 4, 2011 - PRLog -- Mr. Bickerstaff, a Managing Director at M.M. Dillon & Co. and former Chief Financial Officer of Novartis Pharma AG, presented "The Financial Lay of the Landscape" to the group of MBA candidates and recent alums.

The talk was focused on the challenges facing today's biotech and pharmaceutical companies.  "It's no secret that Big Pharma has created wealth, while biotech has destroyed wealth", commented George.  "Biotechs need to find access to lower capital costs in order to be profitable and that is possible, even in today's market."

Some of the discussion points covered during his presentation included:
    -  An overview of the capital markets
    -  Funding sources
    -  Insight on how to secure financing
    -  Alternative financial resources that are currently available

He also emphasized that a critical component to being successful whether you are leading an up-and-coming biotech company, an established Big Pharma or starting your career, is networking.  "Today I shared some interesting stats and thoughts about what's happening from a financial perspective with this sector, but what I'd also like to share with you is that it is important that you stay connected to your peers and colleagues.  In addition, you need to reach out and meet more experts in your fields of interest; through networking, you can stay on top of what is happening right now and get a pulse on what is going to happen in the future."

Mr. Bickerstaff is the co-founder of The Global Leaders which has a proprietary networking platform that enables senior leaders from Business, Government, Education and Philanthropy to leverage their experience, share knowledge and facilitate commerce.  "We are seeing some great things happen through the use of this tool.  Investors are finding those small biotech companies that have a promising clinical trial but need a cash infusion.  Executive Recruiters are able to target the right candidate pools for their searches.  More importantly, young professionals like those I spoke to today, are able to reach out and get advice from our more senior, experienced members.  In addition, they are able to post their resumes and network with the leaders of the industries that they are interested in.  What people are finding out is that, http//www.tgleaders.com is one of the best kept secrets on the World Wide Web."

A complete copy of Mr. Bickerstaff's presentation which includes research on the growth and performance of Biotech and Big Pharma over the last decade is available at http://www.tgleaders.com/group/ny-nj-ct-area-mba-network

For more information about The Global Leaders network visit either their website at http://www.tgleaders.com or go their blog at http://www.tgleaders.blogspot.com

About George Bickerstaff

George Bickerstaff joined M.M. Dillon & Co. as Managing Director in 2005. M.M. Dillon & Co. is an investment bank focused on funding and supporting domestic and international private and public companies. Prior to joining M.M. Dillon & Co., George was Chief Financial Officer of Novartis Pharma AG located in Basel, Switzerland.

George has been instrumental in establishing the strategic, operating and financial direction of numerous private and public companies. During his career he has provided financial leadership for mergers and acquisitions valued at more than $50 billion and has funded and operated various venture capital businesses.

George has a broad range of operating and finance experiences. After receiving engineering and business degrees, he started his career at General Electric in manufacturing and then moved into finance.  He subsequently joined The Dun & Bradstreet Corporation where he held various senior finance positions including Chief Financial Officer of IMS Health, the largest global publically traded healthcare information services provider.

George has been on the board of directors and board of trustees of more than a dozen international private and public companies and philanthropic organizations.  He has been a guest speaker on global finance at various international industry associations and graduate business schools, including Harvard Business School.  George has lived and worked in five countries on four continents.

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The Global Leaders is a unique networking platform that enables senior level executives to find and network with global peers to facilitate business and philanthropic relationships through shared information, knowledge and insights. TGL members have led over 10,000 companies in over 150 industries. For more information visit www.tgleaders.com