Written by Dr Molly Steadman, Life Sciences Knowledge Exchange Manager at Royal Holloway, University of London.
I have a PhD in Biotechnology and since my PhD, I've focussed my career at the intersection of bioscience and commercialisation. However, it was not until September of 2023 that I began my career in Knowledge Exchange at Royal Holloway, University of London, where I am working as a Knowledge Exchange Manager covering the School of Life Sciences. In this role, I became familiar with PraxisAuril via their online community, where I have attended online sessions about engaging students in knowledge exchange and implementing customer relationship management (CRM) systems. This led me to want to attend the in-person conference to learn more about the field and network with those in the community. So, it was great to have had the chance to win a ticket!
Compared to other conferences, I found the atmosphere at PraxisAuril particularly friendly and welcoming. As someone new to the field, I most enjoyed the sessions on topics that shared experiences or provided new perspectives in areas related to my job role, such as the sessions on academic engagement, spinouts, and business engagement. In particular, as I have recently begun supporting Innovate UK applications, the session on business engagement, run by Michael Kohn from Surrey and Michael Joseph from Brunel, was incredibly helpful as they both discussed in depth how they approach engaging businesses via Innovate UK applications.
Overall, I have come away with new ideas for how to approach certain areas of my job role and a broader perspective of the field. I was also able to connect with lots of different people and am keen to attend the next conference!
Dr Molly Steadman,
Life Sciences Knowledge Exchange Manager at Royal Holloway, University of London