Adriana Tajonar
Vice President of Life Sciences Investing at Goldman Sachs
San Francisco, California
Skills
Education
- HU
- MI
Work Experience
2022
Vice President
2022
2020 - 2022
Head of External Innovation
2020 - 2022
2018 - 2020
Board Member
2018 - 2020
2017 - 2020
Board Observer
2017 - 2020
2017 - 2020
Board Member
2017 - 2020
2015 - 2020
Principal
2017 - 2020
Associate
2015 - 2016
2014 - 2015
Partner
2014 - 2015
2012 - 2015
Entrepreneurship Program Manager
2013 - 2015
Mentoring and supporting the most promising life science startups in California. 1. QB3 Startup in a Box Program and QB3/BayBio Accelerator Program o Leading the programs aimed at forming well-structured life science startup companies, preparing them for SBIR funding, coaching them on delivering compelling pitch presentations, and advising for an efficient transition into operations. o Mentoring and incorporating over 180 companies in the areas of therapeutics, diagnostics, medical devices, and synthetic biology. o Launching an online platform for mentoring and peer learning for entrepreneurs. 2. Mission Bay Capital o Identifying pre-commercial scientific opportunities for seed investment by Mission Bay Capital, a QB3-managed seed-stage venture fund. 3. QB3 Rosenman Institute o Helping define vision and operational strategy as a founding team member of the Rosenman Institute, QB3’s new initiative to accelerate the development of medical devices in collaboration with UCSF’s Department of Surgery and experienced medical device engineers. 4. General o Matching QB3 startups with Pharma and Healthcare Partners o Identifying new programs and workshops to increase the education of life-science entrepreneurs. o Building program partnerships with industry experts, entrepreneurs, and service providers. o Marketing QB3 programs to life science researchers, entrepreneurs, international partners, and sponsors.
Interim Entrepreneurship Program Manager
2012 - 2013
Intern
2012 - 2012
• Contributed to building the QB3 Accelerator program to increase the operational excellence of startup companies in the San Francisco Bay Area. • Organized efficient and strategic to-do lists and Gantt charts for startup companies. • Contacted industry partners to build a network of Bay Area companies and entrepreneurs.
2013 - 2013
Teaching Assistant for Life Science Lean LaunchPad course
2013 - 2013
Inaugural Life Science Lean LaunchPad class was taught by Steve Blank along with 4 renowned venture capitalists in the areas of Therapeutics, Diagnostics, Medical Devices, and Digital Health. • Guided teams in the Therapeutics cohort in discovering their product-market fit. • Provided feedback and guidance on customer interviews to define team strategy.
2006 - 2012
Doctoral Candidate
2006 - 2012
- Carried out a genetic gain-of-function screen to find new regulators of human embryonic stem (hES) cell maintenance. - Identified and characterized a novel gene that promotes survival in hES cells.
Teaching Assistant for Human Developmental and Regenerative Biology
2009 - 2011
Organized weekly discussion sections and review sessions, wrote and graded exams and problem sets for three courses led by Principal Faculty in the Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology: - SCRB 165 - Directed Differentiation of Stem Cells - SCRB 10 - Human Developmental and Regenerative Biology - SCRB 140 - Molecular Mechanisms of Growth and Regeneration Earned outstanding student review scores in all courses and a distinction in teaching for SCRB 10.