Meet our team

Frank Kumli, PhD

Frank Kumli has worked at Basel Area Business & Innovation since 2019.

Previously, Frank Kumli worked ten years for Ernst & Young in various global and local functions. Before that, he headed the business development efforts for health ingredients at Lonza and as Director of Marketing & Sales at Carbogen Amcis accompanied its development from start-up to a multinational enterprise.

Frank Kumli completed his PhD in organic chemistry at the Université Catholique de Louvain (Belgium) and was a postdoctoral fellow at the Colorado State University (US), a Sales Management degree at the University of St. Gallen (CH) and an Executive MBA at the University of Rochester (USA/CH).

Stephan Emmerth, PhD

Dr. Stephan Emmerth joined Basel Area Business & Innovation in 2016.

He worked for i-net innovation networks switzerland as Life Sciences Manager before that.

Prior to this, Stephan worked for F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG as a research postdoc and in the Medical Affairs department of Lipomed. At the Friedrich Miescher Institute (Novartis), he was employed as a doctoral student between 2008 and 2011.

Stephan Emmerth studied biology at ETH Zurich and gained his doctorate at the Friederich Miescher Institute (Novartis) in Basel.

Daniel Ginter

Daniel Ginter has been working for Basel Area Business & Innovation since 2020.

Prior to that, he was responsible for Corporate Innovation and Acceleration at digitalswitzerland. He gained experience in management consulting, co-founding and running a startup, corporate work and investing. Daniel Ginter is part of the Stanford GSB LEAD team, delivering Design for Disruption and Decision Making. He consults and coaches C-Level on how to strategically innovate for growth and impact.

Daniel Ginter studied Ecosystem Shaping at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as well as Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Cambridge. He holds a Masters in Law & Economics from the University of Basel, Switzerland.

Sébastien Meunier

Sébastien Meunier joined Basel Area Business & Innovation in 2016.

Prior to this, he was Cleantech Manager at i-net innovation networks switzerland.

Sébastien Meunier worked at the CCI Sud Alsace Mulhouse Chamber of Industry and Commerce, most recently as Head of the Industry Department. He was Head of the Design Office, Laboratory and Measurement Technology at Zurfluh Feller.

Sébastien Meunier studied engineering science at the Institut Universitaire de Technologie in Besançon and at the Institut des Techniques d’Ingenieur de l’Industrie, where he gained his degree in mechanical and production engineering.

Carla Benichou

Carla Benichou has been working for Basel Area Business & Innovation since 2020.

Previously, she gained international experience in startup frundraising, startup strategy consulting and project management within life sciences and technology sectors while working at Gartner and later at Cukierman Investment House. She also completed internships at Unibail-Rodamco and the Spanish Consulate in Paris.

Carla studied Business and Finance at ESADE Business School in Barcelona and is currently pursuing her MSc in Applied Neuroscience at King’s College London.

Thomas Brenzikofer

Thomas Brenzikofer has been with Basel Area Business & Innovation since 2016.

Prior to that, he was Deputy CEO, Head of Communications and Manager of ICT Technology for i-net innovation networks switzerland.

Thomas Brenzikofer was the founder and Editor-in-Chief of the Netzwoche IT magazine. He launched the C-level Magazin business journal and was editor of the WerbeWoche trade paper and of the digital lifestyle magazine Smile as well as a freelance journalist for Cash, Facts, Bolero and various daily newspapers. He is involved as a partner with the quality label Swiss Made Software.

Thomas Brenzikofer studied philosophy and German language and literature at the University of Basel, specializing in communication and media studies.

Leonildo Delgado, PhD

Dr. Leonildo Delgado joined Basel Area Business & Innovation in 2018.

Previously, he worked as a research postdoc at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel, where he collaborated with GE Healthcare in the implementation of laboratory automation systems. He was a doctoral student at the Biozentrum, where he established his first research collaboration with the pharmaceutical F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG.

Leonildo Delgado studied Biochemistry, food chemistry and molecular biotechnology at the University of Aveiro (Portugal) and gained his doctorate in Structural Biology at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel.

Lucas Scherdel

Lucas Scherdel has been working for Basel Area Business & Innovation in 2021.

Previously, he worked in a number of digital and strategic roles in global and regional functions, including the European and global offices of the World Health Organization and the UK’s National Health Service. He also led the Global Coalition for Value in Healthcare at the World Economic Forum.

Lucas Scherdel completed his BSc in neuroscience in the UK and has a Masters degree in politics, philosophy and economics of health from University College London. In 2020, Lucas Scherdel was named on the Forbes list 30 under 30 for science and healthcare in Europe for his contributions towards healthcare.

Stefano Glauser

Stefano Glauser joined Basel Area Business & Innovation in 2019.

He previously ran a smart nutrition start-up, which he created during his Master of Science in Entrepreneurship at the University of Liechtenstein. He completed a Bachelor in International Business, studying in Lörrach, Germany and Cardiff in Great Britain. While studying, Stefano Glauser gained experience in healthcare innovation within an international pharma company in Basel.

Neil Goldsmith

Neil Goldsmith joined Basel Area Business & Innovation in 2018.

Previously, Neil Goldsmith was CEO and board member of Evolva SA, which he co-founded in 2004, taking it from a startup biotech venture to a leading synthetic biology company listed on the Swiss stock exchange. He co-founded Topotarget A/S and Personal Chemistry AB, now Biotage AB. He further founded and managed various life science ventures at an early stage.

Neil Goldsmith holds a 1st class honors degree in Zoology from Balliol College, Oxford University and set up his first company in 1984. He is a board member of Unibio and Double Bioventures.

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Douglas Häggström

Douglas Haggstrom joined Basel Area Business & Innovation in January 2019.

For more than 15 years, he has worked with large and small companies in the healthcare, media, finance and industrial sectors, helping them think about and execute strategies around growth in Australia, Switzerland and Sweden. He was the European Manager of a Fintech startup and worked as a drug development chemist with AstraZeneca.

He holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Industrial Chemistry from the University of New South Wales in Australia.

Albert Hilber

Albert Hilber joined Basel Area Business & Innovation in 2018.

He was a member of the management team in large ICT and high tech companies and as Senior Project Manager successfully managed international ICT projects for sports events and ICT infrastructure projects for industries and public transport. He was a mentor for startups and SMEs. In a part time assignment, he is a member of the administration of Elektra Oberrohrdorf.

Albert Hilber has a diploma in Electrical Engineering Dipl. El. Ing. FH and is graduate of the International Advanced Management Program at IMD Lausanne and the Schweizer Kurs für Unternehmensführung SKU.

Frédéric Nicolet

Frédéric Nicolet joined Basel Area Business & Innovation in 2019. He is responsible for the development and management of technology projects in the Canton of Jura.

Previously, he was Lead Sales Specialist at Bently Nevada, and he held various sales and project management positions at BKW AG in Delémont. He worked as a hardware and firmware developer and as European sales manager in the field of electromagnetic compatibility.

Frédéric Nicolet studied electronic engineering at the Haute Ecole Arc in Saint-Imier and completed his education with a CAS in renewable energies and had further training in coaching.

Daniel Sommer

Dr. Adrian Sprenger

Dr. Adrian Sprenger has been working with Basel Area Business & Innovation since 2017.

Prior to that, he won his entrepreneurial spurs as the Managing Director of his own biotech start-up.

Adrian Sprenger studied biochemistry at the University of Tübingen and gained his doctorate at ETH Zurich, UC Berkeley and the University of Freiburg.