Jonathan O’Connell

Jonathan has more than 27 years of experience in drug discovery, and in his role at Dewpoint, he is responsible for our Discovery Platform which encompasses HTS and Compound Management, In Vitro Pharmacology (IVP), as well as Lab Informatics. Jonathan’s teams are at both our Boston and Dresden locations.

Prior to joining Dewpoint, he was Vice President, Head of Early Discovery and Technology at Valo Health. It was his team at FORMA Therapeutics that was acquired by Valo in 2020. He joined FORMA in 2013 and was tasked with establishing a world-class HTS and Hit-to-Lead support operation. His role evolved to join the leadership and head up FORMA’s Early Discovery Team over two sites with responsibility for compound management, HTS, IVP, ADME, Automated & Early Discovery Chemistry.

Prior to joining FORMA, Jonathan had accumulated 18 years of experience at Glaxo Smith Klein (GSK) and Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS). It was in his first industry role at GSK as an assay designer for high-throughput screening that he found he could merge his passion for biochemistry and enzymology with his interest in automation and technology. As Director at BMS, he drove innovative technology leveraging strategies, leading multiple teams, including a centralized HTS facility, a lead optimization group for neuroscience and virology and a centralized in vitro ADME team supporting programs across six therapeutic areas.

Jonathan received a Bachelor of Science degree in Biochemistry at the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom and subsequently went on to obtain a Ph.D. in Biochemistry at the University of Glasgow. For his Ph.D., he worked under the leadership of Professor Miles Houslay, studying enzymology and cellular localization of type IV phosphodiesterases. He is a Fellow Member of the Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS) and is currently serving as a member of the SLAS Board of Directors.