Women Impacting STEM: Diversity in Careers in the Life Science – Hosted by WIB

Whether you’re determined to forge ahead on your current path or simply eager to explore the vast opportunities within the life sciences, we have an incredible event tailored just for you. Join us for this inspiring National Women In Bio Webinar featuring women making an impact in their fields. They’ll share their inspiring career journeys, revealing the invaluable insights and strategies they’ve acquired along the way.

Speaker Bios

Tanya Silva Alcorn, Senior Vice President, Sterile Injectables and Biotech Operations, at Pfizer

Tanya Silva Alcorn started her career at Pfizer almost two decades ago and now has oversight of 20 manufacturing plants globally, which produce more than 200 medicines and vaccines and more than 4 billion doses each year. In her previous role as Vice President, Global Supply Chain, Tanya had oversight of demand, supply, and inventory management for ~600 products, 15,000 SKUs across 175 markets, and logistics operations globally. Tanya also had overall accountability for the global end-to-end supply chain planning and orchestration for the BioPharma portfolio, inclusive of internal and external manufacturing assets. Tanya and her team worked to distribute Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine and COVID-19 oral treatment, distributing over three billion doses of the vaccine all over the globe. Tanya led a global team accountable for the global supply planning, management, and delivery of the COVID-19 vaccine, including the development and management of a new industry-leading cold chain distribution process, the creation of the innovative thermal shipper (now a part of the Smithsonian collection) and the management of the 24/7 supply chain control tower. In 2020, Tanya also led the COVID-19 response task force for Pfizer Global Supply. Through navigating how to develop a brand-new distribution model for the vaccine, Tanya became a decisive and visionary leader in a time of crisis.

Tanya is the daughter of Portuguese immigrants and was born and raised in New Jersey. She received her bachelor’s degree in biological science from Rutgers University and went on to receive a master’s degree in systems engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology. She has been recognized as a Rising Star and a Luminary by the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association. Tanya is passionate about mentoring young women in STEM-related fields and is part of a mentorship program at Pfizer, where she helps women in the middle stages of their careers as they navigate life through various stages, including as working mothers and as female leaders finding their own voice in technical fields. As a female leader in a male-dominated field, Tanya stresses the importance of being your authentic self in order to be an effective and successful leader. Tanya is married with three children and continues to reside in New Jersey with her family.

Ada Kumar, Medical Director in Medical Affairs at Horizon Therapeutics

Dr. Kumar is a board-certified radiologist who, prior to joining Horizon Therapeutics practiced radiology for almost 15 years in both academic and private practice settings. She completed her undergraduate studies in biological sciences at Northwestern University through the Honors Program in Medical Education where she also completed medical school. After her radiology residency training at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, where she served as chief resident, Dr. Kumar completed a Fellowship in Musculoskeletal Imaging at the University of Chicago. She is excited to bring her expertise in radiology to Horizon Therapeutics, investigating innovative ways imaging can create impactful changes for diagnosing and monitoring treatments for a variety of diseases.

Reema Raghavendra, Associate Director in Alliance Management, Clinical Operations at Moderna

Reema is an Associate Director in Alliance Management, Clinical Operations. She has been at Moderna for 2 years. Prior to joining Moderna, she worked at Abbott & AbbVie for 14 years in diverse roles & functions. Reema has a master’s in chemical engineering and an MBA. She is also a Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) from Toastmasters International.

She started her career at Abbott as a scientist in Process Development of Biologics working from Ph1 to commercial projects. She moved to biologics discovery working in the analytics space, which gave her the preview of early discovery to pre-clinical development. Moving to the business and management side at AbbVie she gained experience in portfolio management, finance, and strategic operations giving her the opportunity to work with the leadership teams. She was also the Global Culture Ambassador at AbbVie and is now co-chair of Women’s ERG at Moderna. She is a mom of twin girls, passionate about traveling and meeting new people. Connecting with people from different backgrounds and cultures is enriching and brings her joy.

Catherine Beke, Americas Head, Area Site Management at AbbVie

Catherine joined AbbVie in 2009 and has held several positions of increasing responsibility within Clinical Development Operations, most recently as Director, Clinical Operations Management, US Aesthetics Medicine. In her current role as Americas Head, Area Site Management, Catherine is responsible for driving area strategy and the overall leadership and management of the Area Site Management Lead team, overseeing and guiding processes, clinical program execution, and Clinical Site Management deliverables across the Americas Area. She brings more than 18 years of multi-therapeutic industry experience, as well as a passion for talent development and growing high-performing teams, to this role. Catherine holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology/Pre-Medicine from Cedar Crest College and a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University. In her free time, she enjoys reading, exercise, and spending time with her husband, two sons, and puppy.