Brian H. Johnson, Ph.D.Founder, Olokun Consulting

Thirty years in the lab, the data and the boardroom. Now I get to choose the work.

I help pharma R&D leaders, founders and mission-driven companies turn science, data and AI into outcomes — and I spend the rest of my time opening doors for the next generation.

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Brian H. Johnson, Ph.D.

A good place to be, and a reason to give it forward.

I started as a chemist, trained at Princeton, and spent three decades where drug discovery meets technology and business strategy. I led R&D technology at global pharma companies, built teams, and watched good science stall for reasons that had nothing to do with the science.

What I learned is that tools rarely fix things. Operating models do. So do clear decisions about data, honest governance and people who are given room to lead.

I named my firm for Olokun, the Yoruba orisha of the deep ocean — a source of wisdom and abundance that lives below the surface. That is the spirit I want to bring to this chapter: depth, generosity and patience.

I'm at a point in my life where I can be selective. I want to spend my energy on companies trying to do real good, on founders who need a seasoned partner, and on young people who deserve someone in the room saying their name.

— Brian

The path so far
  1. PrincetonPh.D., chemistry
  2. Johnson & JohnsonR&D and technology
  3. TakedaVP, R&D Technology
  4. Spark TherapeuticsGene therapy R&D
  5. OlokunFounder, today

Where I can help

Small engagements, senior attention. I work directly with leaders who own the outcome and want a candid partner rather than a slide factory.

R&D operating models

Redesigning how research organizations decide, fund and govern work — so strategy shows up in the portfolio, not just the offsite deck.

For R&D and R&D technology leaders

Data and AI that earn their keep

Treating scientific data as a product, making it AI-ready, and choosing the few AI bets that actually change cycle time, cost or probability of success.

For CIOs, CDOs and heads of research informatics

Next: moderating “The new frontier: AI as therapy,” Oct 22, Washington, DC

Founders and ventures

Sharpening the value proposition, finding the right first use case, and getting a startup's story ready for the pharma partners who will fund it.

For early-stage life-science and health-tech companies

Operating models over toolsTechnology follows how decisions get made.
Portfolio over projectFund the system, not the favorite.
Data as productOwned, curated and built to be reused.
Governance that drives outcomesFewer committees, clearer calls.

Giving back

Investing in the future, the way others invested in me

Nobody gets here alone. Mentors opened doors, sponsors spent their credibility on me, and communities made room for me at the table. Continuing that legacy — for founders, for the next generation, and for the communities that raised us — is the most important work I do.

Startups doing good

I make time for founders working on access, equity and patient impact. Sometimes that's advice over dinner, sometimes an introduction that changes a year.

Mentoring and sponsorship

Mentors give advice. Sponsors spend their credibility. I try to do both for students, early-career scientists and young professionals — especially those who don't yet see themselves in the rooms they belong in.

Community

A group of us founded the Get Together Group nearly two decades ago as a home for healthcare professionals. We've reconvened to put senior experience — and new AI-era ways of working — to work on local causes like food security.

If you're a student or early in your career and want to talk, use the form below and choose “Early-career / looking for a mentor.” I read every one.

Highlights

Let's talk

Whether you're leading an R&D organization, building a company, or just starting out and looking for someone in your corner — tell me a little about it and I'll get back to you personally.

BasedSomerset, New Jersey