In Conversation with Jennifer Gilburg, Deputy Secretary of Technology & Entrepreneurship

Join BioBuzz’s CEO, Chris Frew, as he engages in a dynamic conversation with Jennifer Gilburg, Deputy Secretary of Technology & Entrepreneurship for Pennsylvania, discussing her extensive experience in technology and manufacturing and her role in driving innovation and growth across the state.

October 29, 2024

This article is part of our In Conversation series, one of our ongoing People & Places Features. Go indepth with some of the most interesting people making impact across BioBuzz’s growing biohubs.

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Chris Frew [00:00:01]:
Welcome. I’m Chris Frew, CEO of BioBuzz Networks. I’m thrilled to be here today. Philly Builds Bio 3rd Annual Life Science Symposium. We’re in the heart of Philadelphia where hundreds of attendees and over 50 speakers have gathered to talk about how to build the life science ecosystem and the sector here in Philadelphia. I’m honored to be here today with Jen Gilbert. Jen, thank you for joining us.

Jen Gilburg [00:00:28]:
Good morning. I’m really thrilled to be here.

Chris Frew [00:00:31]:
Wonderful. Would you take a minute to just introduce yourself?

Jen Gilburg [00:00:33]:
Sure. I am Jen Gilberg. I am the Deputy Secretary of Technology and Entrepreneurship for the state of Pennsylvania. I work in the Department of Community and Economic Development where we focus on economic growth of key sectors within the Commonwealth. And Life sciences is, you know, certainly one of those.

Chris Frew [00:00:54]:
Well, I just heard your keynote and I understand how important life science is to the state of Pennsylvania. Can you tell us a little bit about the Shapiro administration’s vision for life sciences in Pennsylvania?

Jen Gilburg [00:01:04]:
Sure. So when the Shapiro administration came in, we had not had a economic plan over 20 years. And so the first thing that he set out to do was tasking the Department of Community and Economic Development under the secretary Rick Seiger to develop a 10 year plan that really focused on areas where we think we have the right to win. And quickly life sciences bubbled up to the top. It’s certainly a huge economic driver to the state. It’s responsible for a big part of our gdp, our job growth, and the amount of R and D coming out of schools like Penn, like cmu, Pitt, Penn State and others is astounding. And we’re trying to make sure we anchor it here and not lose it to other states. So we are ground zero for cell and gene therapy out of Penn. We are the proud home of the, the art of the, excuse me, the Nobel Prize winner for the COVID vaccine. And so, you know, we want to make sure that first we’re amplifying what’s going on here and also making sure that we’re keeping it in the Commonwealth.

Chris Frew [00:02:32]:
That’s wonderful. I love the concept of the right to win based on our strengths.

Jen Gilburg [00:02:37]:
Yeah.

Chris Frew [00:02:38]:
Can you tell us a little bit about some of the accomplishments that you’re proud of so far in the administration?

Jen Gilburg [00:02:43]:
So getting the plan over the line was certainly a huge undertaking and a proud moment to roll that out. And we actually went around the state and we held roundtables. I think there were 12 altogether in different regions of the state. So it really was a team sport to get it done. Getting input from everywhere, not just in Philly and Pittsburgh. And so that was a big accomplishment and then really getting the budget to align with the strategy. So one of the missing elements or challenges for growth was not having places to put manufacturing. So when you look at the 10 year strategy, the budget kind of is going to align with the 10 years and you have to put certain things in front of others. So year one was historic and getting a half a billion dollars out of a bipartisan government to invest in and clean up sites. So when we do grow our manufacturing or grow our life sciences, we have places to put manufacturing. We’re not losing those to other states. So that was a huge effort and we’re really proud of that so far.

Chris Frew [00:04:00]:
When you think about this vision, what are some of the things that are part of that vision that you see that are needed for Pennsylvania to really tip the needle in advancing the sector?

Jen Gilburg [00:04:11]:
Yeah, so I think we need investment. So what we hear from a lot of both the startups and the established life science companies is that we are under investing in that. And so we do really need to, I think step up our investment. You see other states putting considerable resources into this sector like Massachusetts, Texas, North Carolina, and again, to compete, I think we’re going to have to increase our investment. And I mentioned the innovation fund in the keynote. That’s really what we’re going to be focusing on, I think moving into this next budget cycle is how do we resource innovation and life science is a big part of that.

Chris Frew [00:05:00]:
What role does the private sector play in how we advance this vision and to help support the creation of companies and the retention companies here in the region?

Jen Gilburg [00:05:11]:
Yeah, it’s a good question. It’s a really important role. So when we look at creating clusters, yes, it’s great to have the startups, they’re going to have the big growth, but, but we need the Mercks, the GSKs, the JJs and the established companies to anchor here because that helps with workforce development, it helps with talent attraction, it helps with a lot of things. So having the partnership and really anchoring in some of the large private sector, when it comes to venture capital, that’s private sector. We need those dollars focused on our, our state. We work with the university system on talent. So we, it really has been. And you know, in Philadelphia, the fun part about coming to Philly is, you know, in a room I see all the partners that we work with and they show up every time. Like we have the chamber, we have the workforce development boards, you know, we have B labs, we have like all of these Private sector organizations and nonprofits that just show up to do the work at every event dealing with life sciences. It’s the same faces in the room. And that’s I think, something that I don’t know that it’s unique to Philly, but it’s certainly an asset of Philly.

Chris Frew [00:06:34]:
Yeah, well, going into that concept of winning, you have to show up to win.

Jen Gilburg [00:06:37]:
Yep, exactly. Yep.

Chris Frew [00:06:40]:
Philadelphia is, you know, Pennsylvania’s kind of booked in with Philadelphia with a great life science hub in Pittsburgh, which some exciting things.

Jen Gilburg [00:06:49]:
Oh yeah, UPMC is doing a lot of great work.

Chris Frew [00:06:52]:
A bio forge announcement and some things happening out there. How do you see kind of connecting life sciences across Pennsylvania?

Jen Gilburg [00:07:00]:
Yeah, we see states that have invested heavily in innovation now see that translating into manufacturing. And so if you take Massachusetts, they dumped a ton of money into Cambridge. You know, that’s where the innovation happens. That’s where all the VCs are, that’s where the universities are dumping out IP. But now you’re seeing manufacturing in Worcester and Lowell and areas that really needed those high paying jobs. And so that could be Pennsylvania. So if we invest in the IP and the science, we will see it pay dividends into the what we call the T, which is the middle part of the state. And that’s why the half a billion dollar investment in PA sites was so critical because we want to be ready when that expansion happens and we want to make sure we have the places and we’re not losing the manufacturing part of our life sciences investment to other states.

Chris Frew [00:08:01]:
Workforce is always a critical component to the life sciences sector because of the specialized skills needed. What do you see that is important for this vision to happen around the workforce and development and initiatives around that?

Jen Gilburg [00:08:17]:
So that this is one thing that I’m really proud of, the work that’s being done in Philadelphia in particular is there is a ton of work being done around workforce. And what they’ve done is they brought in industry leaders and startups and asked them what do you need? Like what are the talents you need? And then they’ve gone out to community partners like Philadelphia Community College, Montgomery county, the community college, the different nonprofits. And we’re trying to bring everybody to the door to get trained for the roles that are coming. And a lot of the roles, you don’t need a degree for that. You can get some training and get a really nice high paying job as a lab tech. We’re looking at just really making sure that pipeline is ready, but balancing it with the need so that we don’t have all these trained people and then no need. So it’s really been impressive how they’ve organized in this region, all the nonprofits, all the schools and really getting the balance right. So it’s, it’s something I am in awe of every time I come to one of those meetings.

Chris Frew [00:09:29]:
So a mutual friend of ours, also a keynote speaker today at Philly Builds Bio is Rebecca Grant. She is awesome. Rebecca was awesome.

Jen Gilburg [00:09:37]:
She’s a fourth.

Chris Frew [00:09:38]:
She is a force. Rebecca was BioBuzz workforce champion of the Year award last year.

Jen Gilburg [00:09:45]:
She rightly deserves that. Yes.

Chris Frew [00:09:47]:
And that’s community award. So it was voted on by over 7,000 people for her.

Jen Gilburg [00:09:51]:
Not surprised. Yeah.

Chris Frew [00:09:52]:
So you have good partners in that initiative.

Jen Gilburg [00:09:55]:
Yep.

Chris Frew [00:09:57]:
Jen, there’s a lot to be excited about. There’s a lot of, I think, winning in the future of Pennsylvania. What’s your message to startups or companies that are looking for a place to grow their company and considering Pennsylvania?

Jen Gilburg [00:10:10]:
Yeah. So first of all, it is great in so many levels. It’s an affordable place to live. So I grew up in Pennsylvania. I did leave for 30 plus years and I lived in Silicon Valley. And let me tell you, anyone thinking about moving to Silicon Valley, be prepared to spend a lot of time sitting in your car. I think my commute was 12 miles door to door, an hour and 20 minutes. The cost of living is obscene. And I think the one thing that really makes me proud about being back in Pennsylvania is, you know, teachers can own homes, you know, construction workers can own homes, lab techs can own homes. Like, you know, it’s, it’s an affordable place to live and grow and raise a family. So that’s, I think a big check. And I think you’ll find that we are absolutely looking to build the infrastructure to support startups. And we’re on this, you know, we’re still, there’s still work to do, but we’re not stopping. And I think the organizations within Philly, the incubator spaces, the early stage grants and funding, we’re really working hard to provide that infrastructure and we will only continue to add to it. We’re not in a, you know, starting to take away. We’re looking how we lean into it and add to the infrastructure that’s here. But it’s a great, you know, I’ve lived in many states and this is a great state to live in. And I think for life sciences, you’re going to find there is a ton of support through the various networks here.

Chris Frew [00:11:55]:
Well, I’m sure the whole community is excited that you came back.

Jen Gilburg [00:11:58]:
I don’t know. It’s a force.

Chris Frew [00:12:01]:
There’s a force for winning here in Pennsylvania. And we’re proud at BioBuzz help get your message out to our audience all across the country.

Jen Gilburg [00:12:09]:
Yeah. Well, thank you for picking Philly and for getting the word out. We really appreciate it. And I often say it’s clear that Pennsylvania was founded by Quakers because we’re not good about amplifying our successes. And California was founded by gold diggers, and that’s, you know, they’re risk takers. So we need support like BioBuzz to help amplify all the great work that our partners and the entrepreneurs and the scientists are doing for this industry. Thank you.

Chris Frew [00:12:45]:
You’re very welcome. We’re happy to have that role.

Jen Gilburg [00:12:47]:
Yeah.

Chris Frew [00:12:48]:
Well, Jen, thank you so much for joining me today.

Jen Gilburg [00:12:50]:
Wonderful. Thank you.

Chris Frew [00:12:52]:
My name is Chris Frew, CEO of BioBuzz Networks. Here live at Philly Builds Bio.