I am very pleased to announce that the Journal of Commercial Biotechnology has recently appointed a new Managing Editor. Yali Friedman is Chief Science Officer at Washington, DC-based New Economy Strategies and holds a doctorate in biochemistry. He is also author of Building Biotechnology and guest lectures for the Johns Hopkins MS/MBA programme in biotechnology, teaching classes on the business of biotechnology.

As well as bringing Yali on board we are also using this opportunity to revise the general Editorial Board. A number of the current/previous Board members are stepping down and other new members with a range of expertise will be joining over the coming months. Already confirmed to join the Editorial Board are:

  • G. Steven Burrill, Chief Executive Officer, Burrill & Company

  • Iraj Daizadeh, Managing Consultant in IBM's Global Business Services, Strategy & Change Life Sciences Practice

  • Mitch DeKoven, Director – Reimbursement and Market Access, Health Economics & Outcomes Research, IMS Consulting

  • Weijun Li, Senior Research Scientist in Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Global Biological Development in Berkeley, California

  • Arlen Meyers, Professor of Otolaryngology, Dentistry and Engineering at the University of Colorado at Denver and Academic Director for the Bard Center Bioentrepreneurship program

  • Stephen M. Sammut, Senior Fellow, Wharton Health Care Systems and Entrepreneurial Programs and Venture Partner, Burril & Company

  • Grant H. Skrepnek, Assistant Professor and Investigator in the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy and Center for Health Outcomes and PharmacoEconomic Research

  • Stan Yakatan, Chairman of Katan Associates, California.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the current Board for their hard work over the last few years and hope that those who are stepping down at this time will continue to keep up with what is happening with the Journal as it evolves under its new management and guidance.

The new Editor, Yali Friedman (who can be contacted at jcbeditor@palgrave.com) and Editorial Board would welcome any ideas you might have for articles for future issues, or if you have a specific author in mind who you think might like to write for the Journal then do pass on their details to Yali or to myself at the contact details given below. The Journal of Commercial Biotechnology will continue to publish cutting-edge articles from leading figures covering all aspects of biotechnology commercialisation and its related industries.

We would of course also welcome any comments you might have about the Journal, both positive and negative. If you think we should be covering a specific topic, attending a specific event/conference, reviewing a particular new book/service/website etc then do let us know. It is only with your feedback and the wider community's eyes and ears that we can keep publishing what you want to read.

You can of course find out more information about the Journal on the web at: www.palgrave-journals.com/jcb

At the website you will find details on the scope of the Journal, up-to-date ‘instructions for authors’ and information on the manuscript submission process, details of our ‘E-alerts’ table of contents alerting service, access to the online version of the Journal for subscribers, as well as links to other related Palgrave Journals which may be of interest including the Journal of Medical Marketing and the Journal of Generic Medicines.

I hope you will welcome these exciting changes that are happening at the Journal of Commercial Biotechnology and continue to support it as it evolves to bigger and better things in order to maintain its position as a leading industry resource.