About HTG
A charity built to translate medical research
Our purpose is to translate medical research into successful ventures that drive patient outcomes and deliver returns to the Western Australian research community including researchers, institutions, investors and Western Australia.
Founded by leading WA medical research institutions
Two core areas of activity
The Health Translation Group Limited is a purpose-focused entity established to support the medical research community to sustainably deliver on research translation and health technology commercialisation. As a registered charity, any returns we make are directed back towards Western Australian medical research.
Enhancing commercialisation of medical research
Building a critical mass of experienced commercialisation expertise that works seamlessly with the existing ecosystem to improve the commercial offerings and returns from WA medical research discoveries.
Establishing a sustainable investment fund
An open-ended source of early-stage investment that can lead, and follow on, in Western Australian spin-out companies and medical research discoveries.
Governance
Our Board
Sue MacLeman
Chair, Non-executive Director
Sue brings more than 30 years as a pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical technology executive across corporate, medical, commercial and business development roles, including as CEO of ASX, AIM and NASDAQ-listed healthtech companies. She chairs Medicines Australia, Rhythm Biosciences and Viral Vector Manufacturing Facility, and is a Non-Executive Director of Omico.
Frank Cooper AO
Non-executive Director
A chartered accountant, Frank spent more than two decades as a partner at Arthur Andersen, Ernst & Young and PwC before a career as a non-executive director, including on the boards of Woodside and South32. He has chaired the Insurance Commission of Western Australia and served on the UWA Senate and the State Health Research Advisory Council.
Tony Joyner
Non-executive Director
Tony is a commercial and corporate lawyer with more than 30 years’ practice, specialising in technology and data, and governance and risk. A long-time partner at international law firm Herbert Smith Freehills, he was Managing Partner of the Perth office from 2012 to 2021, led the firm’s Global Technology, Media and Telecommunications sector from 2015 to 2022, and helped design and then led its digital transformation strategy from 2021 to 2023. He sat on the firm’s global board from 2012 to 2021, chairing its Risk and Audit Committee. Tony chairs the Lions Eye Institute, the Committee for Perth and the WA Justice Association, is a past Chair of Scitech, and was a director of the WA Chamber of Commerce from 2012 to 2022.
Rob McKenzie
Non-executive Director
Rob is a barrister and solicitor who spent 22 years as a partner at Clayton Utz and its predecessor firms, where he was national head of reconstruction and insolvency. He chairs the Board of the Perron Institute and has served on the Federal Government’s Takeovers Panel.
Leadership
Our Executive
Dr James Williams
Chief Executive Officer
BSc(Hons), PhD, MBA, GAICD
James has spent more than 25 years taking research from concept to commercialisation as CEO, CTO, Director and Chair of public and private biotechs, resulting in five FDA-approved drugs, devices and diagnostics. He conceived the technology behind iCeutica (acquired by Iroko in 2011) and co-invented DMX-200, co-founding Dimerix and leading it for more than 14 years from CEO to Chair. As co-founder and Investment Director of Yuuwa Capital, a $40M Federal IIF-backed fund, he reviewed more than 500 opportunities. He is a Director of the Perron Institute, Chairman of ASX-listed Proteomics International Limited, Director of Atherid Therapeutics and a member of the WA Government’s Health and Medical Life Sciences Industry Advisory Group.
Liddy McCall
Investment Director and CFO
LLB, BJuris, BCom (Hons), GDipApFin, GAICD
Liddy is a serial entrepreneur who co-founded three biotech and medtech companies that achieved four FDA drug registrations and one FDA/CE Mark device approval, with multiple Phase 3 programs. As an Executive Director of Dimerix she led funding, financial structuring and the ASX listing, and was a co-inventor on the DMX-200 patents. She co-founded iCeutica through to its sale to Iroko, and Yuuwa Capital, whose portfolio included Agworld (trade sale of more than $100M), PolyActiva, AdAlta and iCetana. She is a non-executive director and investment trustee for Keyview Group’s circa $1 billion in funds under management.
Dr Meghan Thomas
Investment Officer
BSc(Hons), PhD
Meghan is a clinical development executive with more than 20 years’ experience spanning academic research leadership, health service research governance, clinical trial design and translational development, including senior leadership at Argenica Therapeutics. She is CEO of Atherid Therapeutics and supports HTG’s ventures with company build-out, manufacturing scale-up, and clinical and regulatory planning.
Grace Molloy
Program Director – WATA
RN, MNursPrac, BCom
Grace began her career in accounting, governance and corporate finance before founding and growing a successful women’s health education company, which won a Telstra Best of Business Award for Accelerating Women. She was head of strategy and performance at Linear Clinical Research, WA’s dedicated early-phase clinical trial unit, gaining first-hand experience of how new therapies move into the clinic. At HTG she leads the WA Therapeutics Accelerator, WA’s first dedicated therapeutics accelerator.
Support our mission
Help bring discoveries to patients
Health Translation Group Limited is a registered charity and deductible gift recipient (DGR), established as a company limited by guarantee. Contact us for information about tax-deductible donations.