Chairman of the Board & Chief Executive Officer, Neuraptive Therapeutics (June 2025)

Bob Radie has more than three decades of experience working in both public and private pharmaceutical and biotech companies. Having been involved in the launch of blockbuster antidepressant and antipsychotic drugs for Eli Lilly early in his career, Bob has continued a focus in psychiatric and neurological therapeutics. He led commercial and acquisition successes in neuroscience small molecule companies Prestwick Pharmaceuticals and Zyla Life Sciences and now serves as CEO and Chair of nerve injury-focused Neuraptive Therapeutics.

Previously Bob held leadership roles as President, CEO and Director of Topaz Pharmaceuticals, a specialty pharmaceutical company acquired by Sanofi Pasteur, and Transmolecular, Inc., a biotechnology company developing cancer diagnostics and treatments. He has also held senior positions in a number of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including Morphotek and Vicuron Pharmaceuticals, and currently serves on the Boards of Monument Therapeutics (Chair), Orcosa and Rockwell Medical (Chair), biopharmaceutical companies, and ValSource, an employee owned industry standards company. His prior board experience includes Paratek Pharmaceutical and Veloxis Inc.

Key milestones in your career journey to date?

  • My foundational career in corporate pharma began with Lilly over 18 years, learning about global business and different leadership styles.
  • In 2004 I transitioned to the world of biotech and specialty pharmaceuticals with Victuron and a team of 200 colleagues; exposing me to regulatory, manufacturing and clinical development.
  • My first CEO role was with Transmolecular in 2009.
  • Since 2017 I have enjoyed a portfolio career on the Boards of some outstanding companies like Affinium, Veloxis, PAratek, and Rockwell.

Who has had the greatest influence over your career?

  • My Dad! I learnt so much from him – work ethic, values, inspiring others – during his successful career with Konica Business Machines where he became National VP Sales.
  • Two CEOs who took a chance on me in my early career and helped hone my potential – George Horner and Nick Nicolaides; and we have remained close throughout my career.

Describe your approach to motivating and leading high-performing, multi-generational teams in a flexible hybrid working culture

  • Learning how to adjust leadership style to the current generation and identify what motivates them; balance and want to be heard.
  • The ability to listen and hire well.
  • Equally if a hire is not working out, act quickly.

Are there particular leadership characteristics which have encouraged greater cultural diversity in your company, resulting in different behaviours and outcomes?

  • Listening well, above all, and create the environment in which colleagues can succeed; recognising there is more than one path to success.

Tell me something about your company that you would like to share with the PIR community

  • Neuraptive is developing a novel drug device combination product which will meet unmet medical needs; currently at phase 3, it is a breakthrough therapy designated product by the US FDA.

What impact will AI make both operationally and across research applications in your business over the next 5 years?

  • AI is already having a major impact on things like target identification, De novo drug design and drug re-purposing. In the area of clinical trials AI can identify suitable patients, help with adaptive trial designs and biomarker discovery.

What are some of the key challenges affecting the biotech and life science industry in 2025?

  • Access to capital has never been tougher; resulting in scrutiny for the best of best projects, the only ones which are getting funded.
  • This has come about since the low point of 2022 when the generalist investors pulled out of life science; the IPO window is closed hence the public markets are no longer a path to liquidity.
  • Add to which the climate of maximal uncertainty which has been created in the US since the new administration took over; creating havoc with the regulatory bodies.
  • The turning point will be when the vast amounts of capital held by VCs starts to percolate through.

What top three attributes make an outstanding and relevant leader in today’s world?

  • Be measured in your response to market activity to help the team navigate the highs and lows.
  • Pragmatism with a thick skin.
  • Times of crisis don’t build character, they reveal character.

How do you see the role of biotech executives evolving in the next decade?

  • The ability to continually adapt to change, forever looking ahead.
  • Embrace the power of technology across the business.
  • Remain alert to external influences and how to influence/lobby.
  • Step out of your comfort zone.

How do you switch off and strive for a healthy work/life balance?

  • With five daughters, I learned early to devolve responsibility to my kids!
  • Ensuring I am accessible and present with the family.
  • Use time on the golf course to decompress.
  • Creating a Bonsai tree forest which is hugely rewarding.

What advice would you give your 23-year old self?

  • Trust your instinct sooner and take a risk.

Words of Wisdom?

  • Best Advice I was given:
    • Stay on your toes and be ready for the window of opportunity to open (Nick Nicolaides).
  • Advice I’d give:
    • Remain level and calm to navigate the highs and lows.
  • What I wish I’d known:
    • Compassion and empathy go a long way; the power of EQ as a leader.