On November 13th, 2025, we welcomed Dr. Christopher Ford, Regional Sales Manager at LGC Diagnostics and Genomics, to our B2B Marketing course. With operations in 14 contries and products sold in over 180 markets, LGC operates across the life sciences value chain, from supplying critical biological materials to supporting diagnostics, pharma, and research laboratories. Christopher provided students with a rare inside look into the complexity of B2B marketing and sales within one of the world’s most demanding industries. Christopher began by outlining how B2B sales in life sciences industries are shaped by long decision cycles, strict regulatory requirements, and high scientific and financial stakes. He walked students through the life sciences value chain and emphasized how LGC plays different roles as manufacturer, distributor, and research partner, ensuring coordination with other stakeholders, quality, and regulatory complience. In this environment, knowledge-driven acquisition strategies, quick response times, and cross-functional collaboration are indispensable. A central theme of the session was the importance of trust. Christopher introduced students to the Trust Equation, explaining how credibility, reliability, and intimacy, balanced against self-interest, shape long-term customer relationships. Accordingly, successful sales teams prioritize value, scientific rigor, and long-term partnership potential rather than focusing solely on price. During the interactive case study, students worked on strategies for winning back a lost customer, applying principles of service recovery, proactive engagement, and relationship rebuilding. The exercise highlighted how trust and responsiveness can restore credibility even in competitive and highly technical markets. We thank Dr. Christopher Ford for delivering such a rich and insightful session. We look forward to welcoming him again as part of our guest lecture series.

On October 23, 2025, Julian Schildknecht, Head of Brand and Growth at MicroHarvest, joined the B2B Marketing lecture to share his experience on how to bring deep-tech companies from research to revenue. Drawing from his career in brand building and scaling innovation-driven firms, Julian emphasized his mission to help B2B tech teams bridge the gap between technical excellence and commercial success. He explored the differences between B2B and B2C markets and walked students through the Go-To-Market journey, from early-stage validation to achieving product-market fit. A key takeaway was his “MCP Clockwork Framework”, which connects the Message, Channel, and Persona. Achieving alignment among these three elements, Julian explained, is essential to reaching product-market fit. He encouraged students to adopt an entrepreneurial mindset, continuously testing, learning, and iterating based on customer feedback. Other insights included the importance of aligning on a shared mission and the power of strategic collaboration. In deep-tech markets, partnerships with other firms, research institutions, and public agencies can accelerate market adoption and build credibility. In the interactive part of the session, students worked in teams to apply Julian’s MCP framework to real-world examples, identifying the right message, channel, and customer profile for selected technology-driven products. We thank Julian for sharing his knowledge and experience with our students. It was a truly insightful and practical session, and we hope to welcome him again in the future as part of our ongoing guest lecture series.