Rainer Wessel, PhD, has more than 30 years of international experience in the pharmaceutical and life science sector.

• Since May 2019 he serves as Chief Innovation Officer at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ, Heidelberg).

Previous Professional Positions

• Director Cluster-Management at the Rhine-Main Immune-Oncology Cluster Ci3 (Mainz)
• CEO of biotechnology companies Ganymed Pharmaceuticals AG (Mainz) and Axxima Pharmaceuticals AG (Munich)
• International Head of IP & Licensing at Qiagen GmbH (Hilden)
• Patent Manager Biotechnology at Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH (Ingelheim)
• Research trainee at Boehringer Ingelheim KK (Osaka)

University Education and Scholarships

• Postgraduate scholarship “Language and Practice in Japan” of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD, Tokyo and Osaka)
• Graduate scholarship of the Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds at the University of Constance, PhD in Molecular Biology
• Studies in Biology at the Universities of Münster and Heidelberg, and the Max-Planck-Institute of Medical Research (Heidelberg)

Other Professional Functions (inter alia)

• Managing partner at itechpartners innovation consultancy, Mommenheim
• Co-Founder and former Managing Partner at MIM Deutschland GmbH
• Former Staff Officer of the Reserves at the Medical Academy of the German Army (Munich)
• Founder and former Supervisory Board member of the International Council of the Life Sciences (ICLS, Washington, DC)
• Former Board Member of the German biotech industry organization BIO Deutschland (Berlin)