Bio-1 Governance Board Spotlight on Joseph X. Montemarano
By Rashi Jain

Have you ever imagined how challenging our lives would be if the interaction between industry, government, and academia was nil. Thanks to Joseph X. Montemarano and others who bring these groups together for different purposes, we don't need to worry about it.

In addition to being on the Bio-1 Governance Board and Bio-1’s Bioscience Workforce Development Team, Mr. Montemarano serves as Executive Director for the NSF-Engineering Research Center on Mid-InfraRed Technologies for Health and Environment (MIRTHE) led by Princeton University, and Director for Industrial Enterprise for the Princeton Institute for Science and Technology of Materials (PRISM). He entertains his entrepreneurial and workforce development spirit by being a board volunteer for New Jersey Entrepreneurial Network (NJEN).

In a nutshell, Mr. Montemarano is into creating an infrastructure for cutting-edge research, commercializing innovative technologies and products, as well as promoting alternate routes to teaching, enhancing collaborations among industry, government and academia, assisting small and large companies in accessing emerging technologies, and facilitating the launch of spin-off companies, among other things. He received an Outstanding Service Award from the New Jersey Small Business Development Center in 1994 for his efforts to address the needs of small and medium-sized technology businesses, and in 1995, a Resolution of the New Jersey Senate was passed in recognition of his dedicated service to New Jersey's Biotechnology industry.

Mr. Montemarano agrees that times have changed since then, and the plummeting economy has not only affected people’s lives, but also changed the ways in which industry and academia interact with each other. On one hand the two groups are more willing to collaborate. However on the other hand, they are restraining due to lack of resources to do so. Despite all the shortcomings that the economic crisis triggered, it has immensely contributed in building a foundation for stronger relationships among the industry and academe.

He believes that Bio-1 has increased willingness from people in all aspects of life (i.e. government, industry experts, professors and staff members, and students) to get involved and make things better in this economy by addressing the needs of people with limited resources. With respect to workforce development, he advises the industry to appreciate the diverse pool of talent with greater openness. He hopes to recalibrate the culture and encourage life science companies to hire individuals with experience or expertise from other areas/industries. He says “if you can recycle a facility, then why not a workforce,” because companies may fade away, but talent never does. One of the several measures taken in this regard focuses on mid-career transition programs to address the shortage of science teachers. Through programs like alternate routes to teaching he invests resources in talented individuals with experience and skills from industry and trains them for new opportunities in classrooms.