Alan Johnston, Chair of DEMA
Alan Johnston qualified in Biochemistry and postgraduate
Business Administration, and holds Fellowships and Chartered
status of both the UK Society of Biology and Royal Society of
Chemistry. He spent some 30 years with Inveresk Research
(subsequently Charles River Laboratories) in Edinburgh, initially
in practical Safety of Medicines research, then Operations
Management, and occupied the position of Commercial Director
for the latter 10 years - through the periods of Management Buyout,
USA NASDAQ IPO (at multi-million dollar level) and subsequent
mergers.
At that point, the company employed some 1000 staff locally and
was attracting International Research business largely from
Northern Continental Europe, USA and Japan. Alan travelled
extensively in these territories, where he had responsibility for
Commercial staff. He retired early from this, and from Convenership
of the Statutory General Council (advisory Board) at Edinburgh
University, at the age of 55 in 2008.
He now undertakes considerable voluntary work and remains as a
Trustee of several Educational Charities and a significant Pension
Fund, and was until 2009, Honorary Officer & Treasurer of
the UK Institute of Biology, and Immediate-Past-President of The
University of Edinburgh Graduates' Association.
He is currently Chair of the Board of Edinburgh Convention
Bureau Ltd and Destination Edinburgh Marketing Alliance Ltd and
holds other non-executive and advisory appointments with
Biosciences companies & Organisations, including the Advisory
Board of the BioIndustry Association in Scotland. He is also
actively involved with "Business Angel" investments in early-stage
Life Sciences companies, and is a Young Enterprise Business
Adviser.
