BINA Careers Speakers Series 2024

Bryan Millis – February 21

Bryan Millis
Research Associate Professor
Vanderbilt Biophotonics Center
Vanderbilt University

Career Overview: The career “path” resulting in what I do today probably shouldn’t be called a path at all, and questionably recommended! It’s been a windy journey filled not with a predetermined idea or goal of where I wanted to be or what I wanted to do, but rather taking advantage of opportunities I found intriguing. Unexpectedly, I’ve found most happiness pursuing areas that excite me, which doesn’t always line up with those I’m naturally talented with or educated in. One of the most significant indicators of any successes I’ve had, is being surrounded by people who are passionate about what they do. Today I find myself at home in a center and department filled with a highly heterogeneous mix of biologists, engineers, physicists, and physicians working on a wide array of both systems and applications in biophotonics!

Yara Reis – March 20

Yara Reis
Global BioImaging
Global BioImaging – BioHUB – EMBL

LinkedIn
Global BioImaging Twitter

Career Overview: Yara Reis is a dynamic professional passionate about microscopy and committed to nurturing communities within the imaging sciences. With experience as a lab operations manager in infectious diseases and a PhD in breast cancer research, Yara’s journey has been defined by her fondness for imaging, cultivated since her master’s thesis utilizing open-access microscope facilities. Alongside her scientific pursuits, she co-founded a bi-national networking platform and coordinated science outreach initiatives for children from ethnic minorities, underscoring her dedication to fostering dialogue and advocacy. As the External Relations Manager for Global BioImaging, Yara actively empowers imaging communities and collaborative networks, aligning with the organization’s mission to promote international cooperation, advocate for life sciences imaging, and bolster global capacity-building through training programs and travel grants, ultimately fostering collaboration and driving innovation worldwide.

Vimal Gangadharan – April 17th

Vimal Gangadharan
Head of Growth Marketing & Apps Dev, Biotech/Pharma at ZEISS

LinkedIn
ZEISS Microscopy Customer Center, Bay Area

Career Overview: My curiosity started with the fascination of a simple cell. It led to a journey of discovery, from trying to understand the intricacies of the brain, to the dynamics of human engagement, and is currently lingering in the potential of artificial intelligence.

With this underlying chain of interests, looking back to connect the dots of my career seems straightforward. Holding an undergraduate degree in Engineering & Biotechnology, I took my first flight from Chennai, India to Philadelphia, USA; to pursue my Ph.D. in Cell & Organ Systems at the University of Delaware. Given the opportunity to work at the then ZEISS Microscopy Customer Center as an Applications Scientist in NY, I leaned into a career in the industry. September 2024 will mark my 10th year at ZEISS and ~20 years in the Science & Technology orbit.

However, what makes a career path interesting are the choices not taken, the failed attempts, and the salvage options. We’ll explore some obvious, and not-so-obvious factors that shaped my professional journey, along with pertinent career topics. How might you increase optionality and take measured risks? What qualities enable you to thrive in a professional environment? How do you know if a job is the right fit for you? What role does the culture of a team/company play in your success?

I look forward to sharing my journey, which may help you shape yours.

Vania Cao – May 15th

Vania Cao
Imaging Community Program Manager at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative

Career Overview: From migrating through every business department of a microscopy startup, to jumping fields from basic science to clinical relevance, to experiencing what it’s like to get laid off, I’ve been through quite the journey in the world outside academia after my PhD. I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences and learnings with you, so you can feel more confident and prepared to design your own professional path ahead.

Nick Dolman – September 18th

Nick J Dolman Ph.D.
Thermo Fisher Scientific

Career Overview: Nick is currently Sr Manager, collaborations and customer experience in the Cell and Gene Therapy Business with the Bioscience Division of Thermo Fisher. Prior to this Nick was the director, Enterprise Science & Innovation partnerships for Thermo Fisher Scientific. Nick joined Invitrogen in 2008 as a Senior Staff Scientist, R&D where he led the development of over 70 cell-based assays. Nick’s area of expertise is in the use of fluorescence microscopy to interrogate physiologically relevant models, engineered through functional genomics to recapitulate disease states. Prior to this Nick was visiting research fellow at the NIH/NINDS in Bethesda, Maryland, using combine whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology and multi-photon microscopy to investigate mechanisms contributing to localized calcium signaling in retinal ganglion cells . Nick received his Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Physiology from the University of Liverpool, UK where he focused on advanced fluorescence microscopy to understand polarized membrane trafficking and intracellular signaling in the exocrine pancreas.

David Joy – November 7th

Senior Scientist, Microscopy & Image Analysis at Denali Therapeutics
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9941-9538

Career Overview: My career path has never been particularly well planned. Rather, I’ve always tried to surround myself with interesting people trying to solve hard problems. I started out hoping to become a rocket scientist and got a bachelor’s in aerospace engineering from CU Boulder, but by the time I was done, I found I was more interested in medicine than engineering. Despite knowing very little about it, I took a position as a research programmer working at the NIH on a project to map the connections in the human brain and understand how they can go wrong after trauma. Eventually, I got talked into going back to school and got a PhD in bioengineering from UCSF and UC Berkeley. While I was there, I spent tons of time in the microscopy core learning everything I could, until I eventually got good enough to get hired as an imaging scientist at Denali Therapeutics, where I am today. Whether it’s modeling algae blooms off the coast of Hawaii, mapping vasculature in the brain, or trying to understand how cells organize to form a spinal cord, I find that there’s always new problems to solve. The key is to surround yourself with people asking interesting questions.