Now that the election is behind us, I hope that our national discussion will focus more clearly on how we can keep our economy moving in a positive direction. Entrepreneurship and the role that innovation plays in spurring startups can – and should – be a big part of that conversation.
Overall, I am optimistic. Because businesses crave predictability, in order to plan and invest, I would expect that capital markets and business plans would now adjust to the expected policies of the next Obama administration. Plans and investment that may have been on hold, awaiting election results, can now move forward.
For the overall life science industry, I hope we can count on growing funding for basic and translational research through the National Institutes of Health and other agencies. Discovery and innovation based on this funding should lead to promising new therapies, medical devices, and diagnostics to improve human health. If venture capital recovers to pre-recession levels, more start-up companies based on these novel products will be formed, grow, and thrive, along with ensuing job creation.
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In addition, I am hopeful that the President and Congress will now work together to enact policy changes that will benefit innovation and high-growth entrepreneurship, such as tax reform on a comprehensive or targeted basis; measures to improve the nation’s STEM education system; measures to encourage the retention of foreign-born graduate students in the U.S. who are engaged in R&D in STEM areas; and measures to facilitate the formation and growth of startup companies by immigrant entrepreneurs.
Steve Tang became President and CEO of the Science Center in February 2008 following an extensive nationwide search. Dr. Tang is the first president in the Science Center’s history to have not only led a company through venture funding and an initial public offering, but to also serve as a senior executive with a large life sciences company as it acquired and integrated smaller start-ups.
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