Alan Hirzel

Alan is the Chief Executive Officer of Abcam plc, a global life science company that is publicly listed on Nasdaq ($ABCM) and on the London Stock Exchange ($ABC). He started at Abcam in 2013 and succeeded the founder of the business as CEO. His focus at the company has been on scaling the business through innovation to be a globally influential contributor to improving life science research discovery and its translation of that work to social good through better diagnostics, health care, or other biological impact on the sustainability of the planet.

Prior to Abcam, he worked in and with teams focused on innovation, investment, and growth. In the 14 years prior to Abcam, he lived and worked in London as a Partner at Bain & Company advising executive teams and investors on ways to improve growth and value in their companies. Earlier in his career he worked in several roles including R&D, Operations, and Strategy at the global food company Kraft General Foods. At the start of it all and from a young age, he worked in a family agriculture and food business in the United States.

Alan has supported and worked with education charities and social enterprises throughout his professional life. He was one of the early contributors to the creation of the National Citizen Service and joined its board to get that enterprise off the ground in 2013. From 2010-2014 he was involved in the founding and served on the board of the Social Business Trust looking to back scalable social enterprises with funding and in-kind support. Finally, he has contributed time and advisory work to a wide variety of educational charities and organisations dedicated to helping students from under-represented groups find new opportunities and reach their full potential.

Despite rather modest preparation from rural state schools within the USA, Alan holds BS and MS degrees in biology and an MBA, all from Cornell University.