Harvard Business Case


Juliane Bernholz | Chief Executive Officer, AM-Pharma

Dr. Juliane Bernholz is a seasoned CEO, cell biologist, and molecular geneticist with over 30 years of leadership experience in the pharmaceutical industry having worked and lived in the US and several countries across Europe. Currently, she serves as the CEO of AM-Pharma in Utrecht, where she has played a pivotal role in developing innovative treatments for rare and critical care diseases, including Hypophosphatasia and Acute Kidney Injury. 

Before her tenure at AM-Pharma, Dr. Bernholz held senior leadership positions in R&D and Business Development at renowned companies such as Johnson&Johnson, Sanofi, Novartis and Actelion Pharmaceuticals. Throughout her career, she has successfully led cross-functional teams, managed complex drug development programs, and driven strategic initiatives across small molecules, biologics, new modalities and cutting-edge therapies and has played a key role in bringing multiple therapies to market. Furthermore she has successfully negotiated, executed and chaired collaborations with industry partners  and academic institutions.

With a robust foundation in scientific research, having worked alongside Nobel laureates and earned a PhD in Cell Biology, Dr. Bernholz is passionate about harnessing scientific innovation to enhance patient outcomes. She has also completed executive leadership programs at Wharton and IMD, including a Board Diploma.

Dr. Bernholz is committed to fostering collaboration and driving growth in the global pharmaceutical sector. Outside of her professional endeavors, she enjoys exploring diverse cultures, immersing herself in nature, and engaging in outdoor activities such as swimming, tennis, hiking and skiing. She is a proud mother of two grown sons.



AM-Pharma

AM-Pharma’s purpose is to save and improve the lives of patients confronted with severe medical conditions. Our initial focus is acute kidney injury, impacting hundreds of thousands of people hospitalized each year. Our proprietary compound, ilofotase alfa, has the potential to become the first treatment for acute kidney injury and its potential effect has been demonstrated in almost 1,000 patients in global clinical trials.  We are also developing ilofotase alfa in the severe rare disease Hypophosphatasia. We are a dedicated team driven to bring treatment options to severely ill patients, their families and specialty care professionals.

Find out more about us online at: www.am-pharma.com.

Harvard Business Case

AM-Pharma is a biotech company developing a medicine for patients with acute kidney injury. The case describes the company's journey from inception in 2001 to a large deal with Pfizer in 2015. The aim is to discuss the value creation of AM-Pharma through its strategic decisions over time. It highlights the patient journey, company challenges, market size potential, and how the management team was able to raise multiple financing rounds from venture capitalists. It further provides the readers with a unique insight in the key risks and operational challenges of a biotech company and the value of an experienced management team backed by strong investors. The drug development process is inherently risky, long and expensive and the probability of commercializing a new drug is very low. The company's CEO is the protagonist and the case is split in three parts to provide the readers with surprises and open strategic questions which are time related. The case is semi-chronologically and a patient story is intermingled to provide a different perspective on clinical trials, ethical dilemmas and the high unmet medical need for new therapies. The case ends with a valuation simulation, in which the readers can negotiate the AM-Pharma/Pfizer deal themselves.  

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