Lesley is Head of West North America, External Scientific Innovation, Johnson & Johnson. In this role, Lesley serves as a global partner with a single therapeutic area to drive its external innovation strategy as a dedicated member of the TA-centric external innovation portfolio committee. She is also responsible for the management of the region’s partnership portfolio sourcing through identification, incubation, and due diligence providing expert guidance on business strategy, sourcing, and stakeholder management and governance.
Previously, Lesley served as Regional Vice President, Early Innovation Partnering at Johnson & Johnson Innovation, West North America. In this role, she directed the region’s partnership portfolio and was responsible for a wide range of dealmaking solutions including research collaborations, licensing options, venture investments, new company formations, and incubation to establish value-creating partnerships with promising early-stage innovators.
Lesley served as Head of JLABS @ SSF where she managed lab and business operations for the Johnson & Johnson Innovation incubator site. Most recently, Lesley was Managing Director at Lasana Partners where she successfully facilitated multiple partnerships. Before Lasana, Lesley was the Chief Business Officer of Annexon BioSciences. Lesley is a passionate contributor to California’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion in the life sciences industry.