2024 Speakers | Kisaco Research

2024 Speakers

Animal Health, Nutrition & Technology Innovation USA
13-15 May, 2025
Boston, MA

Our Confirmed 2024 Speakers:

We've spent months creating a speaking faculty of the biggest disruptors, innovators and decision makers in the animal health industry - take a look at our full list of confirmed speakers here

  •

    Author:

    Ester Banque

    Executive Vice President & President, U.S. Operations
    Zoetis
    ... read more

    Ester Banque

    Executive Vice President & President, U.S. Operations
    Zoetis

  • Author:

    Cindy Cole

    Partner
    Digitalis Ventures

    Dr. Cindy Cole is a Technical Partner at Digitalis Ventures and an Associate Clinical Professor at the University of Florida. Prior to joining Digitalis she was in the animal health industry for many years holding senior leadership and R&D roles at Mars Petcare, Novartis Animal Health, IDEXX, and Piedmont Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Cole completed her DVM and PhD at the University of Florida and was on the faculty of the University of California, Davis and UF.

    ... read more

    Cindy Cole

    Partner
    Digitalis Ventures

    Dr. Cindy Cole is a Technical Partner at Digitalis Ventures and an Associate Clinical Professor at the University of Florida. Prior to joining Digitalis she was in the animal health industry for many years holding senior leadership and R&D roles at Mars Petcare, Novartis Animal Health, IDEXX, and Piedmont Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Cole completed her DVM and PhD at the University of Florida and was on the faculty of the University of California, Davis and UF.

  •

    Author:

    Candise Goodwin

    Founder
    Outlier Advisors
    ... read more

    Candise Goodwin

    Founder
    Outlier Advisors

  • Author:

    Bruce Truman

    President and Founder
    BLT Technology & Innovation Group
    ... read more

    Bruce Truman

    President and Founder
    BLT Technology & Innovation Group

  • Author:

    Jennifer Radosevich

    Senior Vice President, Research and Innovation
    Hill’s Pet Nutrition

    Dr. Jennifer Radosevich is Worldwide Director of Research at Hill’s Pet Nutrition where she is responsible for leading the early research team to develop and accelerate new technologies for Hill’s products. She oversees the Nutrition Innovation, Bioinformatics and Research Laboratories teams to further research platforms including nutrigenetics, nutrigenomics, metabolomics, and microbiomics. She completed her PhD in Biochemistry/ Molecular Cellular and Developmental Biology at Iowa State University and has over 25 years industry experience leveraging innovation to further business goals in the agribusiness, human and pet food markets.

    ... read more

    Jennifer Radosevich

    Senior Vice President, Research and Innovation
    Hill’s Pet Nutrition

    Dr. Jennifer Radosevich is Worldwide Director of Research at Hill’s Pet Nutrition where she is responsible for leading the early research team to develop and accelerate new technologies for Hill’s products. She oversees the Nutrition Innovation, Bioinformatics and Research Laboratories teams to further research platforms including nutrigenetics, nutrigenomics, metabolomics, and microbiomics. She completed her PhD in Biochemistry/ Molecular Cellular and Developmental Biology at Iowa State University and has over 25 years industry experience leveraging innovation to further business goals in the agribusiness, human and pet food markets.

  •

    Author:

    Celine Halioua

    Founder & CEO
    Loyal
    ... read more

    Celine Halioua

    Founder & CEO
    Loyal

  • Author:

    Linda Rhodes

    VMD, PhD, Independent and ex-CSO
    Independent Animal Health

    Dr. Rhodes has over 30 years of accomplishments in human and animal drug discovery, development, biomedical research, and clinical veterinary medicine.

    Dr. Rhodes was educated at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine (VMD) and Cornell University (PhD). She has an extensive background in physiology, veterinary medicine, and drug development, and many publications in peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Rhodes practiced clinical veterinary medicine for five years, with experience in both companion and farm animal practice. As a senior research fellow at Merck Research Laboratories for 8 years, she led pre-clinical biology evaluation of several marketed human drugs. She worked for Merial Ltd. as director of large animal development projects, leading project teams developing novel compounds for a variety of indications. In April 2001, she formed AlcheraBio, a consulting, marketing, and contract research firm specializing in developing new drugs for animals, working with biotechnology and animal health companies world-wide. AlcheraBio was acquired in 2008 by Argenta, and Dr. Rhodes served as executive vice president to transition the company when in 2011, she accepted a position as CEO of Aratana Therapeutics, a startup company developing innovative new medicines for dogs and cats. Subsequently, when the company became public she served as its Chief Scientific Officer. During her 5-year tenure, the company achieved FDA approval of three new pet therapeutics: Galliprant, Nocita and Entyce. She is currently retired and an independent consultant. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Zoetis, and serves on the Scientific Advisory Boards of the Alliance for Contraception in Dogs and Cats and the Michelson Found Animals Foundation. She founded Feather in Her Cap, a non-profit that recognizes the achievement of women in the animal health industry. She is the recipient of the Iron Paw Award.

    ... read more

    Linda Rhodes

    VMD, PhD, Independent and ex-CSO
    Independent Animal Health

    Dr. Rhodes has over 30 years of accomplishments in human and animal drug discovery, development, biomedical research, and clinical veterinary medicine.

    Dr. Rhodes was educated at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine (VMD) and Cornell University (PhD). She has an extensive background in physiology, veterinary medicine, and drug development, and many publications in peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Rhodes practiced clinical veterinary medicine for five years, with experience in both companion and farm animal practice. As a senior research fellow at Merck Research Laboratories for 8 years, she led pre-clinical biology evaluation of several marketed human drugs. She worked for Merial Ltd. as director of large animal development projects, leading project teams developing novel compounds for a variety of indications. In April 2001, she formed AlcheraBio, a consulting, marketing, and contract research firm specializing in developing new drugs for animals, working with biotechnology and animal health companies world-wide. AlcheraBio was acquired in 2008 by Argenta, and Dr. Rhodes served as executive vice president to transition the company when in 2011, she accepted a position as CEO of Aratana Therapeutics, a startup company developing innovative new medicines for dogs and cats. Subsequently, when the company became public she served as its Chief Scientific Officer. During her 5-year tenure, the company achieved FDA approval of three new pet therapeutics: Galliprant, Nocita and Entyce. She is currently retired and an independent consultant. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Zoetis, and serves on the Scientific Advisory Boards of the Alliance for Contraception in Dogs and Cats and the Michelson Found Animals Foundation. She founded Feather in Her Cap, a non-profit that recognizes the achievement of women in the animal health industry. She is the recipient of the Iron Paw Award.

  •

    Author:

    Jason Clay

    Senior Vice, Market Transformation
    World Wildlife Fund
    ... read more

    Jason Clay

    Senior Vice, Market Transformation
    World Wildlife Fund

  • Author:

    Julia Loew

    Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations
    MWI Animal Health
    ... read more

    Julia Loew

    Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations
    MWI Animal Health

  • Author:

    Betsy Watkins

    Senior Director, Business Development
    Pegasus Laboratories, Inc. (PRN Pharmacal)
    ... read more

    Betsy Watkins

    Senior Director, Business Development
    Pegasus Laboratories, Inc. (PRN Pharmacal)

  • Author:

    Mr. David Smith

    CEO & Executive Chair
    Ceres Tag
    ... read more

    Mr. David Smith

    CEO & Executive Chair
    Ceres Tag

  • Author:

    Greg Geckles

    VP, Market Insights
    Independence Pet Holdings
    ... read more

    Greg Geckles

    VP, Market Insights
    Independence Pet Holdings

  • Author:

    Chuck Latham

    CEO
    H&C Animal Health
    ... read more

    Chuck Latham

    CEO
    H&C Animal Health

  • Author:

    Tom Overbay

    Partner
    Expedite Animal Health
    ... read more

    Tom Overbay

    Partner
    Expedite Animal Health

  • Author:

    Mark Cushing

    Founder and CEO
    Animal Policy Group
    ... read more

    Mark Cushing

    Founder and CEO
    Animal Policy Group

  • Author:

    Steve Merchant

    Managing Director
    Virtual Vet Nurse
    ... read more

    Steve Merchant

    Managing Director
    Virtual Vet Nurse

  • Author:

    David Haworth

    Chair, Research Working Group
    Human Animal Bond Research Institute (HABRI)
    ... read more

    David Haworth

    Chair, Research Working Group
    Human Animal Bond Research Institute (HABRI)

  • Author:

    Eric Buda

    Sr Corporate Partnership Manager
    Plug and Play Tech Center
    ... read more

    Eric Buda

    Sr Corporate Partnership Manager
    Plug and Play Tech Center

  • Author:

    Lashonda Geffrard

    Founder & CEO
    Black Pet Business Network

    Lashonda Geffrard's name is synonymous with passion, dedication, and innovation. As the driving force behind Black Pet Business Network, The Paw Shop, and Paws of Hope Florida. Lashonda is a force to be reckoned with, a true trailblazer in the world of entrepreneurship, and animal welfare. Her boundless love for animals and her drive to create a more inclusive and thriving pet industry has catapulted her into the realm of expert pet industry speaking and influence.

     

    With an unwavering commitment to positively impacting the pet industry as a whole, Beyond her speaking engagements, Lashonda's impact on the pet industry extends to her role as a popular columnist for various industry publications. Her thought-provoking articles delve into the depths of the industry and shed light on emerging trends.

    ... read more

    Lashonda Geffrard

    Founder & CEO
    Black Pet Business Network

    Lashonda Geffrard's name is synonymous with passion, dedication, and innovation. As the driving force behind Black Pet Business Network, The Paw Shop, and Paws of Hope Florida. Lashonda is a force to be reckoned with, a true trailblazer in the world of entrepreneurship, and animal welfare. Her boundless love for animals and her drive to create a more inclusive and thriving pet industry has catapulted her into the realm of expert pet industry speaking and influence.

     

    With an unwavering commitment to positively impacting the pet industry as a whole, Beyond her speaking engagements, Lashonda's impact on the pet industry extends to her role as a popular columnist for various industry publications. Her thought-provoking articles delve into the depths of the industry and shed light on emerging trends.

  •

    Author:

    Julia Stephanus

    Partner
    Borealis Ventures

    Julia Stephanus is a 30 year veteran of the veterinary pharmaceutical industry.  Currently Julia is President of Avviare, a consulting firm specializing in supporting veterinary focused start-ups. 

    Julia has been involved in the development and launch of 28 veterinary products.  She has been a senior executive in two start-up pharmaceutical companies (Aratana Therapeutics and Summit VetPharm), and held key positions at multi-nationals including Pfizer (now Zoetis) and its legacy companies.

    As Chief Commercial Officer of Aratana Julia provided the commercial leadership resulting in a successful IPO (NASDAQ:PETX), high-impact corporate branding, innovative go-to-market strategies for five therapeutics and the staffing of the inaugural commercial organization.

    As founder and CEO of Summit VetPharm, Julia developed and launched a new line of companion animal parasiticides, grew the company to a cash flow positive position with 85 employees in five years and divested the company to Ceva Animal Health in 2010.  A graduate of Indiana University, she has continued her executive training at Harvard, Columbia, University of Chicago and the Wharton School of Business.      

    ... read more

    Julia Stephanus

    Partner
    Borealis Ventures

    Julia Stephanus is a 30 year veteran of the veterinary pharmaceutical industry.  Currently Julia is President of Avviare, a consulting firm specializing in supporting veterinary focused start-ups. 

    Julia has been involved in the development and launch of 28 veterinary products.  She has been a senior executive in two start-up pharmaceutical companies (Aratana Therapeutics and Summit VetPharm), and held key positions at multi-nationals including Pfizer (now Zoetis) and its legacy companies.

    As Chief Commercial Officer of Aratana Julia provided the commercial leadership resulting in a successful IPO (NASDAQ:PETX), high-impact corporate branding, innovative go-to-market strategies for five therapeutics and the staffing of the inaugural commercial organization.

    As founder and CEO of Summit VetPharm, Julia developed and launched a new line of companion animal parasiticides, grew the company to a cash flow positive position with 85 employees in five years and divested the company to Ceva Animal Health in 2010.  A graduate of Indiana University, she has continued her executive training at Harvard, Columbia, University of Chicago and the Wharton School of Business.      

  •

    Author:

    Brian Cassell

    CEO
    Vane
    ... read more

    Brian Cassell

    CEO
    Vane

  • Author:

    Stephen Lesser

    CEO
    Tairbhe Ventures
    ... read more

    Stephen Lesser

    CEO
    Tairbhe Ventures

  • Author:

    Brett Wong

    Principle
    Anterra Capital
    ... read more

    Brett Wong

    Principle
    Anterra Capital

  • Author:

    Ellis Fried

    Vice President
    Vanterra Capital
    ... read more

    Ellis Fried

    Vice President
    Vanterra Capital

  • Author:

    Aidan Connolly

    President
    AgriTech Capital
    ... read more

    Aidan Connolly

    President
    AgriTech Capital

  • Author:

    Jeff Mard

    Founder & CEO
    Channel M, LLC
    ... read more

    Jeff Mard

    Founder & CEO
    Channel M, LLC

  • Author:

    Natalie Marks

    Executive Committee
    VANE
    ... read more

    Natalie Marks

    Executive Committee
    VANE

  • Author:

    Duncan Mackintosh

    Senior Investment Manager
    Brandon Capital 
    ... read more

    Duncan Mackintosh

    Senior Investment Manager
    Brandon Capital 

  • Author:

    Denise Bevers

    President & CEO
    VETmAb Biosciences, Inc
    ... read more

    Denise Bevers

    President & CEO
    VETmAb Biosciences, Inc

  • Author:

    Professor Curtis Huttenhower

    Associate Professor of Computational Biology and Bioinformatics
    Harvard School of Public Health

    Talk to me about… your research

    I am a Professor in Biostatistics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and an Associate Member at the Broad Institute.  I participated extensively in the NIH Human Microbiome Project and co-leads the "HMP2" Center for Characterizing the gut microbial ecosystem in IBD and the Human Microbiome Bioactives Resource.  My  lab focuses on computational methods for functional analysis of microbial communities.  This includes systems biology reconstructions integrating metagenomic, metatranscriptomic, and other microbial community 'omics, the human microbiome in autoimmune disease such as IBD, and its potential as a biomarker and route for therapeutic intervention.

     

    Talk to me about…something people may not know about you

    I'm a happy kitty parent, most recently of two new kittens who (like human babies) have as yet to learn to sleep through the night. I wish I had as much energy as they do!

    ... read more

    Professor Curtis Huttenhower

    Associate Professor of Computational Biology and Bioinformatics
    Harvard School of Public Health

    Talk to me about… your research

    I am a Professor in Biostatistics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and an Associate Member at the Broad Institute.  I participated extensively in the NIH Human Microbiome Project and co-leads the "HMP2" Center for Characterizing the gut microbial ecosystem in IBD and the Human Microbiome Bioactives Resource.  My  lab focuses on computational methods for functional analysis of microbial communities.  This includes systems biology reconstructions integrating metagenomic, metatranscriptomic, and other microbial community 'omics, the human microbiome in autoimmune disease such as IBD, and its potential as a biomarker and route for therapeutic intervention.

     

    Talk to me about…something people may not know about you

    I'm a happy kitty parent, most recently of two new kittens who (like human babies) have as yet to learn to sleep through the night. I wish I had as much energy as they do!

  •

    Author:

    Andrew McKenzie

    CEO
    Precision Livestock Technologies
    ... read more

    Andrew McKenzie

    CEO
    Precision Livestock Technologies

  • Author:

    Susan Groeneveld

    Founder
    sylvester.ai
    ... read more

    Susan Groeneveld

    Founder
    sylvester.ai

  • Author:

    Neal Fishman

    Distinguished Engineer and CTO of Data-Based Pathology
    IBM
    ... read more

    Neal Fishman

    Distinguished Engineer and CTO of Data-Based Pathology
    IBM

  • Author:

    Ira Gordon

    Executive Committee Member & Founder
    VANE
    ... read more

    Ira Gordon

    Executive Committee Member & Founder
    VANE

  • Author:

    Dain Clare

    Senior Associate
    Novaquest Capital Management
    ... read more

    Dain Clare

    Senior Associate
    Novaquest Capital Management

  • Author:

    Alexander Petersen

    Managing Director & Animal Health Lead
    Corporate Finance Associates




    ... read more

    Alexander Petersen

    Managing Director & Animal Health Lead
    Corporate Finance Associates




  • Author:

    Neal Fishman

    Distinguished Engineer and CTO of Data-Based Pathology
    IBM
    ... read more

    Neal Fishman

    Distinguished Engineer and CTO of Data-Based Pathology
    IBM

  • Author:

    Jason Scott

    Founder & Managing Partner
    Five Two Five
    ... read more

    Jason Scott

    Founder & Managing Partner
    Five Two Five

  • Author:

    Dr. Kimberly Simmons

    Director Global Regulatory Affairs
    Clinglobal
    ... read more

    Dr. Kimberly Simmons

    Director Global Regulatory Affairs
    Clinglobal

  • Author:

    Mike Seely

    CEO
    Native Microbials
    ... read more

    Mike Seely

    CEO
    Native Microbials

  • Author:

    Tim Bettington

    Executive Vice President, Corporate Strategy & Market Development
    Elanco
    ... read more

    Tim Bettington

    Executive Vice President, Corporate Strategy & Market Development
    Elanco

  • Author:

    Joe Spector

    Founder & CEO
    Dutch
    ... read more

    Joe Spector

    Founder & CEO
    Dutch

  • Author:

    Graysen Gilbraith Biensch

    Executive Director
    Veterinary Virtual Care Association
    ... read more

    Graysen Gilbraith Biensch

    Executive Director
    Veterinary Virtual Care Association

  • Author:

    Jürgen Horn

    CEO
    Invetx
    ... read more

    Jürgen Horn

    CEO
    Invetx

  • Author:

    Aaron Schacht

    CEO
    BiomEdit
    ... read more

    Aaron Schacht

    CEO
    BiomEdit

  • Author:

    Mitch Frazier

    CEO
    AgriNovus Capital




    ... read more

    Mitch Frazier

    CEO
    AgriNovus Capital




  • Author:

    Ginny Siller

    Director of Legislative Affairs
    Animal Health Institute
    ... read more

    Ginny Siller

    Director of Legislative Affairs
    Animal Health Institute

  • Author:

    Jonathan Hare

    Director of Pharmaceuticals & Therapeutics
    Clinglobal
    ... read more

    Jonathan Hare

    Director of Pharmaceuticals & Therapeutics
    Clinglobal

  • Author:

    Cal Lai

    Chairman & CEO
    Ask.vet



    ... read more

    Cal Lai

    Chairman & CEO
    Ask.vet



  • Author:

    Ashley Francisco

    Head of Startup Ecosystem – North America
    Google
    ... read more

    Ashley Francisco

    Head of Startup Ecosystem – North America
    Google

  • Author:

    Tim Peart

    President
    Micro Technologies



    ... read more

    Tim Peart

    President
    Micro Technologies



  • Author:

    Robin Moyle

    Executive Committee Member
    Veterinary Angel Network for Entrepreneurs
    ... read more

    Robin Moyle

    Executive Committee Member
    Veterinary Angel Network for Entrepreneurs

  • Author:

    Mayur Patel

    Vice President, Global Product Development and R&D Portfolio Management
    Elanco
    ... read more

    Mayur Patel

    Vice President, Global Product Development and R&D Portfolio Management
    Elanco