Vatsala Naageshwaran serves as the Chief Executive Officer at Franklin Biolabs, a leading genetic  medicines contract research organization (CRO) dedicated to advancing cell and gene therapies from  discovery through market approval. She is an award-winning, results-driven biopharmaceutical executive  with rich experience in creating robust strategies for scientific and business growth in the CRO/CDMO  space. She has supported technical and commercial operations with a deep commitment to advancing  innovative therapies for patients over a 20-year professional career.  

Vatsala was Chief Business Officer at Absorption Systems and following the acquisition by Pharmaron,  became part of the Executive Management team responsible for Pharmaron US Labs. In her role as Vice  President, Head of Business Development and CGT at Pharmaron, Vatsala was responsible for overall  global business strategy for US biopharmaceutical services, small molecule, biologics, cell, and gene  therapy integrated services across preclinical, clinical, manufacturing, and commercial phases. She has been  involved in all aspects of decision making to develop the pipeline and global portfolio for multiple business  verticals and key market sectors. Prior to joining Pharmaron and Absorption Systems, Vatsala worked at  Astex Pharmaceuticals and Myriad Genetics.  

Vatsala has an AM degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Mt Holyoke College, an M.S. degree in Pharmacometrics from the University of Maryland Baltimore and a Ph.D. in Ocular Drug  Research from the University of Eastern Finland. She is the recipient of IDIQ and BAA grants from the US  FDA. Her research has been featured at national conferences such as ARVO, AAPS, SOT and AACR and  she has authored multiple publications submitted to peer-reviewed journals.