Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed is a strategic life sciences executive and early-stage company builder with a proven track record of bridging scientific rigor with capital-efficient business strategies. He currently serves as the Director of Project & Portfolio Strategy at Greenstone Biosciences, where he directs matrixed, cross-functional workflows to advance discovery pipelines to IND readiness and enables venture spin-outs. Additionally, Dr. Ahmed acts as a Strategic Advisor for Accanito Therapeutics, guiding capital strategy and foundational business operations to transition academic oncology assets into company-sponsored clinical trials.
Deeply embedded in the San Francisco Bay Area venture and academic ecosystem, he is also a Visiting Scholar at Stanford University, focusing on integrating advanced methodologies into practical drug development. A recognized thought leader in translational modeling, Dr. Ahmed has published extensively on regulatory modernization and New Approach Methods (NAMs)—including “Clinical Trial in a Dish” frameworks—in leading journals such as Circulation and Nature Reviews Drug Discovery. He holds a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Toronto.
Rebecca is an organized and results-driven Global Clinical Development Operations Project and Team Leader with extensive experience in managing complex clinical trial projects, programs, and portfolios across all phases, from early-stage to late-stage development. Her expertise in clinical trial budget management, Agile project management, and cross-functional leadership, enables successful execution of clinical programs with a focus on operational excellence, quality, and regulatory compliance.
She has proven success in:
• Leading global clinical trial operations and developing operational strategies to support clinical program objectives.
• Oversight of CROs, vendors, and clinical sites, ensuring compliance with ICH/GCP, local regulations, and organizational SOPs
• Developing and delivering operational strategies, ensuring budget, timelines, and resource management for large-scale clinical trials
• Driving innovation and adopting AI to optimize clinical operations and accelerate drug development.
• Providing mentorship and fostering team development, creating high-performing teams aligned with corporate strategy.
Shaily Arora, PharmD, is an Executive Regulatory Science Director, Oncology at AstraZeneca, where she orchestrates the regulatory strategy concerning tumor drivers and resistance-related clinical research endeavors. She established and co-leads the AstraZeneca Dose Optimization Working Group to support the dose optimization paradigm across the oncology portfolio. Additionally, she serves as the regulatory lead for several patient-centric initiatives, underscoring her commitment to advancing healthcare outcomes.
Prior to her current role, Dr. Arora served as an Associate Director in the Office of Oncologic Diseases at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), where she spearheaded initiatives and projects spanning from pre-IND stages through post-marketing phases. Before assuming this role, Dr. Arora served as a clinical reviewer within the Breast and Gynecologic Malignancies Team at the FDA. Notably, she was instrumental in shaping FDA’s Project Orbis and was a founding member of the Project Optimus initiative. She provided strategic input in the development of various FDA guidances, policy initiatives, and authored impactful publications.
A frequent public speaker at national and international forums, Dr. Arora adeptly represents her organization at external forums, scientific societies, and global conferences. She is the recipient of distinguished accolades, including the 40 under 40 Award from California State University, East Bay (CSUEB) and the Alumni Early-Career Award from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), that underscores her dedication, excellence, and multifaceted contributions to the professional, philanthropic, and personal spheres.
Sunil Benimadhu joined the Stock Exchange of Mauritius (SEM) as Chief Executive in May 1998. He was appointed Executive Director of the SEM in October 2008. Sunil was until
October 2020, the Chairman of Global Finance Mauritius (GFM), the apex body of private sector operators in the Financial Services Industry in Mauritius, aiming at developing
Mauritius as an International Financial Centre of excellence. During his tenure, he played an instrumental role in the setting up of Mauritius Finance, which is now the leading voice for the financial services industry in Mauritius, he served on its Board from November 2020 to April 2024. He was a Board member of the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE), an association of the World’s leading Stock Exchanges, from October 2014 to September 2021.
Sunil was the President of the African Securities Exchanges Association (ASEA), an association of 25 Stock Exchanges operating on the continent, from August 2010 to November 2014. From 2002 to 2005, he was a member of the Executive Committee of the South Asian Federation of Exchanges (SAFE), which comprises twelve Stock Exchanges of
the South Asian region. From April 2001 to February 2004, he chaired the SADC Committee of Stock Exchanges (COSSE), an association of ten Stock Exchanges of the Southern African region.
Sunil is a regular speaker on Emerging and African Financial Markets in international conferences. He holds a M.B.A. in Finance and Investment from the University of Illinois,
United States. He also holds a D.E A. in Development Economics and a Maîtrise in Macro-Economics from the University of Aix-Marseille, France.
Paolo serves as the Head of Marketing Europe for SIG Group. He joined the company six years ago, bringing with him extensive experience in various marketing roles within leading global Food FMCG companies (Nestlé and Ferrero). Since 2020, Paolo has advanced his career at SIG, starting as the Marketing Manager for South-East EU and later becoming responsible for the entire European market. His background enables him to effectively integrate BtB and BtC skill sets, strategic marketing, and a comprehensive understanding of consumer behavior and the retail landscape.
Dr. Patrick Hochloff drives using flexibility of energy assets in E.ON’s Energy Infrastructure Solutions segment. He integrates digital solutions in the European subsidiaries and provides solutions integrated with industrial energy supply. He developed solutions for customers in the paper and chemical industry and now he scales it for the food & beverage industry. As graduated engineer and with a scientific background in energy economics, Patrick is passionate about optimizing flexible assets and exploring technical and commercial ways for E.ON’s customers.
