John Kurek

John Kurek

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
856 followers 500+ connections

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About

John is the Biotechnology Investment Director at Uniseed, Australia's longest running venture fund Uniseed is Australia’s longest-running venture fund, with investment capital provided by nine leading Australian universities, the national science agency CSIRO and leading Australian Superannuation Fund, UniSuper. At Uniseed John is responsible for identifying new investment opportunities, and also covers Uniseed's overall biotechnology and life sciences portfolio. Uniseed has supported 66 start-up companies, being the seed investor in most of these, and has exited twelve investments, to date, including Novartis acquisition of Spinifex for US$700m; Shire plc acquisition of Fibrotech Therapeutics for US$557m; and Hatchtech sale to Dr Reddy's Laboratories for ~US$200m.

John brings 24 years of industry experience as a Biotechnology Manager with a focus on the strategic design and implementation of drug development programs. John’s previous roles have included Pharmaceutical Development Manager at BioDiem Ltd., managing the preclinical, clinical and regulatory aspects of BioDiem’s drug development programs, and Preclinical Development Manager at Amrad Corporation Ltd., where he was responsible for the management of preclinical drug development projects. His experience extends from drug discovery to the clinical phase of drug development. He has acted as a Director on the Board of investee companies that have collectively raised AU$300 million.

John's experience covers the following areas;
- Acting as Director on investee company boards
- Biotechnology project management
- Investment analysis and due diligence
- Financial modelling
- Intellectual property management
- Business development
- Risk management
- Relationship management

Activity

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Experience

  • Uniseed Graphic

    Uniseed

    Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    Cambridge, United Kingdom

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    Melbourne, Australia

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    Department of Clinical Neuroscience

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    Centre for Bioprocess Technology

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    Department of Biochemistry

Education

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    A comprehensive director program covering corporate governance, performance, and compliance issues of directorships. Awarded by coursework and examination.

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    The course covered pharmacology, toxicology, pharmaceutical sciences, quality control issues, clinical trial methodology and interpretation and therapeutics as they relate to drug evaluation.
    Graduate diploma awarded by coursework and examination

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    Research project examining the role of neurotrophic growth factors in neuromuscular disease, with a specific focus on their therapeutic application in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and Motor Neurone Disease.

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Volunteer Experience

  • Hughesdale Primary School Graphic

    School Council - General Secretary

    Hughesdale Primary School

    - 1 year 11 months

    Education

    The School Council is the governing body of the school and draws on the school community for its members - parents, Department of Education staff and the broader community. As a member of the School Council I was active in developing the vision for the school and of the school's strategic plan in collaboration with all members of the school community. The School Council determined appropriate policies within Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) guidelines that…

    The School Council is the governing body of the school and draws on the school community for its members - parents, Department of Education staff and the broader community. As a member of the School Council I was active in developing the vision for the school and of the school's strategic plan in collaboration with all members of the school community. The School Council determined appropriate policies within Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) guidelines that ensured that the aims of the school are achieved. In addition, Council controlled the school’s monies and resources. As General Secretary I was responsible for preparing the minutes following each School Council meeting and managing incoming/outgoing correspondence.

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