Brian Hagopian, Water Purity and Rapid Bacteria Detection

01/05/21 • 65 min

My guest today is Brian Hagopian who's known as or at least I call him "the Kevin Bacon of the Boston life sciences industry", either you know him or you know someone who knows him. He is currently the President of Clear Water Consulting, Inc.,and received his chemistry degree from Colgate University. He has over 35 years of design, manufacturing, and operational experience and is currently a highly sought after high purity water subject matter expert. Brian is an instructor at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and is also a Massachusetts certified instructor offering licensing courses for industrial wastewater operators. Brian is the Past President of the ISPE Boston Area Chapter where he helped to lay the foundation for the Boston Chapter’s highly successful Product Show at Gillette Stadium. Not surprisingly, Brian is one of six people to have received the Hank Moes Lifetime Achievement Award for significant contributions to the Boston chapter and the life sciences industry.

Some key takeaways from the interview. - Brian's dad was an entrepreneur - You have to be in the game to win it - We underestimate how much time and money everything’s going to take - When you're an entrepreneur, say goodbye to the 40 hours per week schedule - No matter your industry, it'll continue to evolve. You must try to keep up. - Being "thrifty business owner" got him to develop a new wastewater training course - Advice to Young Professional - avoid debt, plan for big expense in advance, use credit card only for emergencies, learn to negotiate, set goals and make plans to achieve them - His potential Ted talk - General water safety - Role models - Bill Russell (ex-Celtics player) - true team player, one of the greatest basketball players of all time - Books recommend to others - Outliers and Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell, Dale Carnegie public speaking course - it helps with a lot more than just public speaking, Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman - Quote he lives by - The harder I work, the luckier I get (the world is full of brilliant but lazy underachievers)

For me, he's been a friend and a mentor. In this interview, we talk about his beginning as an entrepreneur and all the excitement and challenges that come with that, how the industry has changed over the years and where it's headed. You'll also hear some nuggets about how to build your professional career, develop new skills and why hard work will outperform everything else every time. Hope you enjoy this talk from a very generous individual who's always given more than he has received. Here's Brian Hagopian.

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Episode 11 - Dr. Andrea Adamo and the Out of This World Flow Technologies

My guest today is Dr. Andrea Adamo who is the Founder and CEO of Zaiput Flow Technologies. He also serves as the Innovation Advisor at Snapdragon Chemistry. Dr. Adamo holds a Master of Science in Engineering from the University of Palermo, Italy and a Ph.D. in Fluid Mechanics from the University Federico II of Naples, Italy in addition to a Master of Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He was also awarded the Fulbright Scholarship. After completing his graduate studies, Dr Adamo joined the laboratory of Professor Klavs Jensen, Director of the MIT Chemical Engineering Department and arguably one the world leaders in continuous flow chemistry.

In this chat with Dr. Adamo, we talk about his journey as an adolescent boy from Italy through his formative years to developing the technology that was literally tested in the outer space. I hope you enjoy my interview with this brilliant and visionary yet humble thought leader. Here's Dr. Andrea Adamo.

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Episode 13 - Francesca McBride, Cell Therapy and Global Regulations

My guest today is Francesca McBride. Francesca completed a Bachelor of Science Degree at the University of Delaware in 1985, majoring in Pre-Veterinary Science. As a pharmaceutical/ biotechnology regulatory compliance specialist Francesca works with international companies to support the design, start-up, licensing and operation of clinical and commercial product manufacturing facilities.

She has been with Jacobs (Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology) for 25+ years and currently in her capacity as a Director, Regulatory Compliance is involved in the support of client and design teams to ensure the design meets the applicable international cGMP / cGTP requirements.

During her tenure at Jacobs she has lived and worked in the US, UK, Ireland and India. She has both presented and published papers at global conferences.

Most recently she has worked with hospitals and universities in the design and startup of new cell therapy facilities that support the treatment of cancer. Francesca's goal is to build a stronger relationship with the cell therapy facilities to advance the cancer treatment opportunities - an area which is very close to her heart and you'll understand why after listening to her story. Last but not least, she's also a Triathlete.

Some takeaways from the interview - Francesca's global journey - Say yes to new opportunities - When a new technology is introduced, everyone's learning at the same time - Regulatory 101 lesson - Which regulations apply during which stage of the drug development - How regulatory agencies' approach have changed over the years - How different regulatory agencies differ - Regulatory Dos and Don'ts at the beginning of a project - Advice for young women: Research careers to match your interest, Develop your expertise - Impact of a good professor on a student - Book she keeps going back to (given to her by her sister) : The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

Enjoy this interview with Francesca and listen how she simplifies the complicated global regulations around the life sciences for us to understand. Here's Francesca McBride.