Sumin Koo

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

SKILLS

ABOUT SUMIN KOO

Sumin Koo, Ph.D. is a senior healthcare executive and strategic advisor. She combines strategic consulting and operational executive experience, grounded in a rigorous scientific background. She began her career at McKinsey & Co.’s healthcare practice, serving pharma and biotech clients on Merger & Acquisitions and R&D. She then joined Novartis, leading a cross-functional team to deliver late-stage clinical trials, shepherded the asset through approval for FDA Biologics License Application, and prepared for product launch. Sumin became Vice President of Haemonetics, a $4B medical device public company. She worked as Chief of Staff to the CEO in a turnaround, supporting Board of Director meetings, investor communications, and special projects outside reporting lines. Sumin joined Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as Deputy Director for the Innovative Technologies Solutions group. She was mobilized in the Foundation’s COVID response to poor regions. Key actions included Dx CEO Roundtable with NIH, partnering with Clinton Health Access Initiative on a volume guarantee deal, and participating in WHO’s COVID-19 accelerator. She led the due diligence for impact investors (Soros Economic Development Fund and 2 family offices) that resulted in an £80M acquisition of a distressed diagnostic company to preserve its neglected diseases assets. She was appointed by the NewCo’s Board to be its interim CEO. In that capacity, she onboarded an external CFO to drive clarity into the financials, developed options for its sustainability, and aid its transition into a dual-mission entity that is financially independent and impact focused. Sumin was trained in cancer genetics, under the sponsorship from the Agency of Science, Technology and Research of Singapore. She earned her Ph.D. studying the genetics of leukemia at Harvard Medical School. She graduated from University of Cambridge, as a Glaxo-Wellcome Scholar, with a B.A. in Biochemistry.