IPA Leadership

Dr. James (Jim) Kuo currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of Return Health and Managing Director of Athena Bioventures in La Jolla, CA. He is an experienced biotech industry executive and investor, who brings financial and management experience to the company. During his career, he has held executive positions in private as well as listed bioscience companies in the US, Canada, and Europe. He previously served as CEO of Tryp Therapeutics, Synthetic Biologics, BioMicro Systems, and Discovery Laboratories. Prior to that, Dr. Kuo was Associate Director in Corporate Licensing and Development at Pfizer and Managing Director of HealthCare Ventures, a $378 million venture fund. He received his MD from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and his MBA from the Wharton School of Business. Dr. Kuo's undergraduate education is in molecular biology and music history from Haverford College.

Dr. Jennifer Bath is the CEO and President of ImmunoPrecise Antibodies. She obtained a Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Biology, specializing in immunology and biochemistry, with a focus on discovering and validating biologics for the prevention and treatment of neglected tropical diseases. Dr. Bath held a tenured position as an Associate Professor of Cellular and Molecular Biology, while concurrently serving as the Founder and Executive Director of the Concordia Global Vaccine Institute. She also served many years as a strategic growth and business operations advisor for global pharma, biotech, and government.

Dr. Bath has held executive roles in both biotechnology and contract research organizations, with her most recent post on the executive team at Aldevron, LLC. Here, she headed the global client relations and high value target teams, and defined business strategies by applying knowledge based on the science, technology and market. In addition, she served as a key technical specialist, converting challenges for pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients into operational initiatives.

Lisa Helbling previously served as the Chief Financial Officer for IPA. She brings over thirty years of broad experience in accounting, finance, enterprise risk management, audit, and ESOPs. Currently, she serves on the board of directors for Healthy Dakota Mutual Holdings and Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota and is the Chair of the Audit & Compliance Committee. Prior to joining the executive team, Ms. Helbling served as CFO at Anchor Ingredients and TMI Hospitality, as well as VP of Internal Audit and Business Risk Management at Otter Tail Corporation.

Mr. Greg Smith is a seasoned capital markets veteran who held senior positions in investment banking and institutional fixed income portfolio management before transitioning to private equity with the acquisition of one of the largest HVAC companies in Western Canada. Mr. Smith held the position of Portfolio Manager for Phillips, Hagar & North & Executive Director, Canadian Securitization Group, CIBC World Markets in Toronto for close to ten years. Mr. Smith currently serves as President & Director of Broadway Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Co. Ltd. Mr. Smith earned an MBA from Dalhousie University, is a Chartered Financial Analyst and serves in advisory and board positions to multiple private and public ventures.

Dr. Robert D. Burke is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Victoria, where he was a faculty member for over 35 years. He has a longstanding research interest in the molecular basis of cellular signaling in early embryonic development. His research involves production and characterization of antibodies and he employs them extensively with high-resolution optical imaging methods. Dr. Burke has published over 100 peer-reviewed publications and has supervised numerous trainees. He was Chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology for eight years, was on the University of Victoria Senate for twelve years, and served on numerous advisory and management committees nationally and internationally. Dr. Burke completed a BSc and a PhD at the University of Alberta.