Courtney McBean
Senior Vice President, Development Operations Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc.
Courtney McBean is Senior Vice President of Development Operations and Chief of Staff at Ultragenyx, where she aligns strategy, operations, and ways of working to drive performance across R&D. With leadership experience spanning Ultragenyx, Genentech, Medtronic and Worldwide Clinical Trials, she is known for leading complex transformations and building high‑impact, collaborative organisations.
Seminars
- How can life sciences organizations reduce decision‑making friction and role confusion that slows execution across R&D?
- Learn how Ultragenyx diagnosed ‘organizational swirl’ and introduced the Stop the Swirl initiative and Fix It framework using live forums, real‑time coaching, and embedded decision tools
- See how this approach drove sustained cross‑level engagement over 18 months, with measurable participation data and strong qualitative feedback, leading to clearer accountability, shared decision language, and improved execution discipline across teams
As life sciences organizations grow, maintaining a strong culture while ensuring fast, effective decision-making becomes increasingly challenging. This interactive Q&A explores practical strategies for protecting organizational identity, reducing decision friction, and creating the clarity needed to sustain performance through periods of rapid growth and transformation.
- Maintaining cultural consistency and employee engagement during rapid expansion
- Defining clear decision rights and accountability in complex, cross-functional environments
- Embedding frameworks, tools, and behaviors that reduce organizational friction
- Building leadership capability, coaching practices, and cultural ambassador networks that reinforce ways of working
End the conference with a high-energy Speed Learning session designed to maximize the value of your time in the room. Through a series of rapid-fire, facilitated discussions, you’ll tackle a curated set of the most pressing challenges facing HR, TA, and L&D leaders today – gaining diverse perspectives, sharing practical solutions, and leaving with a final set of actionable ideas to take back to your organization.
