As part of our Podcasthon initiative, we sat down with Mathias Terheggen, Head of Partnerships and Philanthropy at ETH Foundation, to talk about a question many people ask before giving: does my contribution really make a difference?

In this conversation, Mathias shares how donations help create real opportunities for future scientific talent, why every contribution matters, and how support can help shape the environment where curiosity, research, and innovation grow.

If you’ve ever wondered whether your support can have a real impact, this episode is for you.

You can donate any amount here:

https://ethz-foundation.ch/en/online-giving-polyfonds/

AI is making CVs look better than ever — but is it actually making hiring easier? In this episode of leadership lab, Maurice sits down with Jana Herman, Chapter Lead for Integrated Workforce Strategies at Roche (Basel), to break down what’s changing in recruitment right now — and what isn’t.

Jana shares why candidates are currently the biggest winners from AI, how hiring teams handle huge application volumes, and why human experts are still doing the screening in many organisations. They also unpack video interviews, internal talent marketplaces, and the long-promised shift to skills-based hiring.

Along the way, Jana walks us through her career journey — from growing up in Brazil to studying in Geneva, working as a flight attendant, moving into HR and executive search, and ultimately shaping a global workforce strategy function inside Roche.

In this episode:

• AI, CV screening, and why “perfect” applications can slow hiring down

• How recruiters manage high volumes without losing candidate experience

• Video interviews: when they help, when they frustrate

• Culture fit vs the “perfect CV”

• Internal gigs and talent marketplaces (and the guard rails they need)

• Skills-based hiring: big promise, hard execution

• Career advice: impact, networks, comfort zones, and why “the right time” is a myth

If you enjoyed this conversation, follow leadership lab and share the episode with someone hiring — or job hunting — right now.

Hiring people who are better than you isn’t just good leadership — it’s the point. In this Season 2 opener of Leadership Lab, Maurice sits down with Annick Whyte, Commercial Delivery and Adoption Lead, to unpack what leadership looks like when the pace is fast, the stakes are high, and AI is changing the rules.

Annick shares why the real unlock isn’t “better prompts” — it’s vibe coding: building small, fast apps and workflows that prove value quickly, then bringing the business along for the ride.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why the best leaders hire people who are better than them (and how to stay secure while doing it)

• What “delivery and adoption” actually looks like day-to-day

• AI in pharma: where it’s already accelerating work (and where it still gets stuck)

• “AI wars”: OpenAI vs Gemini vs Copilot — what shows up when you compare outputs

• Moving from commercial to R&D, and why AI drug discovery is the next frontier

• Resilience as a leadership advantage (inner compass, clarity, and doing the work)

👉🏻 If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the show and rate leadership lab — it genuinely helps more people find it.

Need to hire? hello@headcount.ch

Meet Armend Håti — Kosovo-born, Norway-raised bioengineer who turned an early patent into ClexBio.

We talk about being a “young” biotech founder, the US spark that flipped his mindset, why his first industry role was (surprise) in krill, paying patent bills out of pocket, fundraising nerves, and the big move from Oslo to Zurich to surround the science with the right talent. We finish with a compact masterclass for PhDs and first-time founders on validating ideas and actually asking for the money.

ClexBio in one line | Enabling cells as therapy — first with delivery systems for stem-cell assets, then toward engineered, vascularised tissues.

www.clexbio.com

Mentorship Minute | Validate the need with uncomfortable conversations, filter the feedback, refine or kill fast. And if you can, co-found with legal firepower.

Chapters
00:00 Meet Armend — origin & identity
02:10 From Kosovo to Norway — values & education
06:40 Nerd energy → bioengineering (dyslexia as edge)
10:50 US spark — Santa Barbara & Boston shift to building
24:55 Why krill? First industry role & learning to pitch
31:40 From IP to startup — buying the patent & fundraising
52:10 Landing in Zurich — talent, scale, next chapter
56:50 ClexBio in one line — enabling cells as therapy
1:02:50 Mentorship Minute — advice for PhDs & founders

👍 Follow the show on Spotify, and subscribe on YouTube for new episodes.

➡️ For the latest life sciences roles, follow us on LinkedIn or visit our website!

From law to biotech CEO — Franz-Werner Haas shares how vision shaped his career and leadership journey.

From rural Germany to biotech boardrooms — Franz-Werner Haas’s career is anything but linear. A law graduate who started out in the fishing industry, he went on to lead CureVac during COVID and today serves as CEO of LimmaTech Biologics.

In this Leadership Lab conversation with Maurice Thornton, Franz shares how vision shaped every step of his journey — and why titles matter far less than ambition, resilience, and timing.

You’ll hear:

• Why vision was his fuel from law school to biotech leadership

• The unexpected lessons from the fishing industry

• Leading through CureVac’s COVID-19 crisis

• Building teams and trust in biotech

• His mentorship advice on resilience, safe spaces & networking

Follow Leadership Lab for more real leadership stories from pharma, biotech, medtech & digital health.

From figure skates in Boston to biotech boardrooms in Basel—Sarah Holmes-Klotz never took the obvious route. Now Head of Global HR at Santhera Pharmaceuticals, she joins host Maurice Thornton to talk about long-distance love, career pivots, resilience, and what it really takes to lead HR at a publicly traded life sciences company.

Expect honest insights on relocation, rejection, reinvention—and why the scenic route might be the smartest career move of all.