Meet Helder Freitas, Vice President (BIAL Biotech), Business Development!

ACADEMIA AND MOTIVATION

My background training is in Biology, driven by an amazing Biology teacher I had in high school, followed by a Master's in Biodiversity & Genetic Resources. I did part of my masters in Montpellier where I benefited from the technology existing there – an automated sequencer – that allowed me to generate 10x more data than what I could have done in Porto at the time. Thank you, innovation! That was also the first time I left my hometown of Porto (more specifically, Maia). Some days were not easy but this experience proved to be very important for what happened later in my career.

WHY BIAL?

I joined BIAL in April 2008, coming from the research bench and with an almost finished MBA – my first months at BIAL were the last months of the MBA (finished in June that year)! I had doubts that I could do what I was being asked to do – to establish BIAL’s affiliate in French West Africa. But I had no doubts about BIAL's capabilities and of the people who were giving me such a big opportunity, so I trusted they knew something that I did not. That was my first direct experience of the risks that BIAL was willing to take and of the opportunities those represent.

WHAT’S IT LIKE TO WORK AT BIAL?

Perseverance is the word that defines my time with BIAL. We faced many challenges, and we will surely face many more. On certain occasions, we needed more time; on others, we needed more information; on others yet, we needed a colleague’s incentive to not give up. Mix it with hard work and it becomes a powerful combination to achieve great things.

JOURNEY AT BIAL

I had the opportunity to contribute to the establishment of BIAL-FWA, negotiate several medicines for BIAL's portfolio, start the Alliance Management team, and now help build BIAL Biotech, thereby contributing to making therapeutic solutions available to those in need in several regions of the world. So, throughout more than 16 years with the company in these different roles, I interacted with all areas of BIAL and many colleagues in formal teams, project teams, ad hoc teams or simply helping each other. The commitment, a sense of purpose, and many times an unwavering belief that we could do it, all stand out when I think back.