Thomas Marten

Thomas Marten has over 38 years of pharmaceutical, biotech, and academic medical innovation experience with significant experience in business development, new product planning, product launch strategy development, corporate strategy development, market research, brand marketing, and pharmaceutical sales planning. 

Currently, Tom is the Managing Director of the Coulter Program at the University of Michigan.  The Coulter Program provides funding and support for translational research projects aimed at turning university invented medical technologies into investible medical device and biotherapeutic new product concepts.  Tom has been instrumental in changing academic research mindsets into new product planning and early-stage development mindsets with the development of the ‘Enlighten’ strategic planning process that integrates primary market research with regulatory and competitive landscape assessments to formulate commercially viable target product profiles, milestones and go-to-market strategies.  Tom has also built and nurtured a diverse industry mentor pool to provide project guidance and has established collaborations with market research, regulatory strategy, pre-clinical research organizations and contract manufacturing firms to foster new product planning and early-stage development efforts for university research projects.  Over 10-year period with Tom as the Managing Director, Coulter funded and supported nearly 40 projects that led to 12 new startups, 5 IP licensing deals to large medical device companies, and the generation of over $300 million in angel and venture capital financing.

Prior to joining UM in 2013, Tom had commercial operations leadership roles with Glaxo Inc, Glaxo Wellcome, Bayer Biological Products, and Talecris Biotherapeutics.  While working for established pharmaceutical and biotech companies, Tom was involved in over 10 major product launches in capacities including: new product strategic planning, global brand marketing, market research, sales force planning, and sales.

In addition to industry roles, Tom also founded Pharmacision, an independent consulting firm working with early-stage specialty pharma, medical device, and diagnostics companies conducting primary market research and guiding new product planning, business plan development, investor fundraising, and out-licensing efforts.  While running Pharmacision, Tom has also taken roles directing commercial strategy for Aastrom Biosciences, a cell therapy company, and serving as a start-up COO for RetroSense Therapeutics, a gene therapy company.

Tom received a B.S. in Medicinal Chemistry from the State University of New York at Buffalo and has an MBA in Finance from the William E. Simon School of Business at the University of Rochester.

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