Frank L. Douglas

An award-winning industry veteran with almost 30 years of experience as a leader in healthcare, pharmaceutical research and entrepreneurship, Douglas serves as day-to-day chief strategist for Austen BioInnovation.

He is University Professor in the College of Polymer Science and Engineering at The University of Akron, Professor of Integrated Medical Sciences at Northeast Ohio Medical University, member of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation’s Board of Trustees, and senior partner emeritus of PureTech Ventures. Douglas currently is the national chairman of the Value-driven Engineering and U.S. Global Competitiveness initiative, a public-private coalition made up of leaders from industry, academia and the public and private sectors working to retain the United States’ lead in medical device development and innovation.

In addition, Douglas serves as a current member of the Battelle Memorial Institute Board of Directors, National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) Advisory Council, BioOhio Board of Directors and Ohio Medical Corridor initiative.

While at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Douglas was the Professor of the Practice in the MIT Sloan School of Management and also held similar appointments in the departments of biology, biological engineering and the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, and was the founder and first executive director of the MIT Center for Biomedical Innovation.

Douglas was formerly executive vice president, chief scientific officer and a member of the board of management of Aventis, where he headed drug innovation and approval, with global responsibilities for research, development, and regulatory and marketing support. A leader in innovation in pharmaceutical research and development, Douglas serves on multiple boards of directors, most recently joining that of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation and Kauffman Foundation. He has also served as Chief Scientific Advisor of Bayer Healthcare, AG.

Douglas is the recipient of the 2007 Black History Makers Award and has been honored twice as the Global Pharmaceutical R&D Director of the Year, in recognition of his leadership and success in improving innovation and productivity in pharmaceutical companies. Most recently, Douglas accepted the Award for Outstanding Entrepreneurship at the 18th Annual Caribbean American Heritage Awards.