9/8/2026

30 Years in Pharma, Running a Six-Person Biotech, and the Future of European Drug Development

"We're willing to take extremely high risks in terms of career and testing things in the clinic, and we do that almost routinely and sort of dismiss it as not that important. And the thing that I find ironic is when I think back to Big Pharma, where there was no risk really to one's career, we were much more conservative and risk-averse."

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In this episode, I talked with Dr. Eliot Forster, CEO of Levicept, a neurophysiologist-turned biotech veteran with 30+ years of experience across Big Pharma and a series of CEO roles. We get into clinical failures, the realities of running a six-person company through a Phase 2 trial, and what it really takes to lead when the outcome is binary.

Eliot also shares his honest take on the state of European biotech, what he wishes he'd known before his first CEO role, and why he still rolls out of bed excited every single morning. And yes, he also runs a brewery, hosts his own podcast, and still finds time for cricket, golf, and the wildlife of Africa.

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Here's What You're In For

Why getting your first break in pharma through atypical, non-linear routes can be more valuable than a straight path
What Big Pharma truly gives you, and what you need to unlearn before it stifles you
The emotional reality of closing a company after a drug failure, and what it means for the people who trusted you
Why biotech employees take existential career risks while Big Pharma employees with nothing to lose are paradoxically more risk-averse
How a six-person team took a novel OA drug successfully through a 520-patient Phase 2 study
The lean biotech model: when it works, when it breaks down, and how to decide what stays in-house
What Eliot looks for in a recruiter, and why understanding the business is the bare minimum
Why EU biotech is not as broken as people think, but what three structural gaps are still holding it back
How CEOs of early-stage companies should think about commercial positioning from day one
Why forming trust with investors early, rather than treating them as adversaries, is one of the most important lessons in the CEO toolkit

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Timestamps

05:08 – How Eliot got his first job: neuroscience PhD, sabbaticals at Merck and Parke-Davis, and landing at Glaxo in 1992
07:55 – What Big Pharma at Pfizer and GSK taught him: leadership, trusting teams, and what "good" looks like
11:18 – Career low point: closing Solace Pharmaceuticals after a failed Phase 2 trial and the personal weight of that moment
15:02 – Why biotech employees take bigger career risks than Big Pharma employees who have nothing to lose
16:46 – Levicept: the company, Leve-04, and the successful Phase 2 outcome in osteoarthritis
18:11 – How Eliot joined Levicept and Simon Westbrook's transition from CEO to CSO
24:19 – Running a six-person company through CROs and consultants, and why most investors are surprised it works
28:06 – How to decide what to keep in-house versus outsource
30:40 – What Eliot expects from recruiters and how trust-based relationships are built in small biotech hiring
33:21 – What's coming next for Levicept: IND in the US, long-term dosing studies, and joint replacement deferral
35:48 – The state of European biotech: where it's improving and the three structural gaps still holding it back
40:39 – Advice for seed-stage CEOs: start with the end in mind and live three to five years ahead
42:23 – What Eliot wishes he'd known before his first CEO role

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Here are the links to the episode:

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About Eliot

Dr. Eliot Forster is the CEO of Levicept, a UK-based clinical-stage biotech developing Leve-04, a neurotrophin 3 inhibitor for the treatment of osteoarthritis. A neurophysiologist by training, Eliot spent the first half of his 30+ year career at Big Pharma, including Pfizer and GSK, before transitioning into a series of biotech CEO roles. He also serves on multiple boards, including at Ematics, and splits his time between the UK and South Africa.

Outside work, Eliot runs a brewery, hosts the LifeSci Fantastic podcast, and still makes time for cricket, golf, and the wildlife of Africa.

Connect with Eliot:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eliot-forster-5a6ba63/
The Life Sci Fantastic: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-life-sci-fantastic/id1846575448

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About Levicept

Levicept Ltd is a UK-based clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company founded by Simon Westbrook (CSO and co-founder, formerly of Pfizer's pain biology group in Sandwich, Kent). The company is focused on a single lead asset: LEVI-04 (p75NTR-Fc), a fusion protein targeting the p75 neurotrophin receptor for the treatment of chronic musculoskeletal pain, with osteoarthritis of the knee as the lead indication.

Levicept: https://levicept.com/

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About Charles

My name is Charles Spence and I lead Discera. After many years working in the life-science recruitment world, I decided to work for myself. Before doing recruitment I graduated with a biomedical degree, have worked in hospitals (including translation work in Seoul, South Korea), and also spent a year working in diabetes research in Stockholm. After doing research and travel, a career in business and science felt the most appropriate.

In 2023, I decided to launch my firm - Discera Search. A firm committed to solving the biggest talent needs of early clinical stage SME biotechs on the East Coast and DACH.

Connect with me: