BNA Face of the Fortnight: Gary Gilmour

19th Feb 2024

The BNA Face of the Fortnight is a new initiative, where we want to showcase the breadth, depth, and variety of neuroscience in the UK and abroad.

BNA Face of the Fortnight: Monday 19th February 2024

Gary Gilmour is the Vice-President of Preclinical research at Compass Pathways. After completing his DPhil at Oxford University Gary joined Eli Lilly, where he worked across a range of neuroscience drug discovery challenges – spending almost 20 years in the Psychiatry Drug Hunting Team, In Vivo Pharmacology team, and later as a Research Advisor to the Pain Discovery Group.  

As Vice-President of Pre-Clinical Research at Compass Pathways, Gary leads a team to understand and explore the potential of new and investigational compounds, including psychedelics, for the treatment of mental health conditions. The potential to offer new treatments to patients with different mental health challenges who have previously had limited or no options to help them, is the reason Gary has worked in mental health research for so long.

Gary is a long-time member of the British Neuroscience Association and has been actively involved in various aspects of the BNA throughout his career, particularly supporting the BNA in our efforts to promote cross-sector collaborative research across industry and academia. As an Industry Representative and member of the BNA’s Council and Committee between 2013-2017, Gary was an integral part of the BNA’s leadership and governance and his support and involvement continues today via his involvement in the BNA’s Industry Group – supporting our ‘Building Bridges Between’ initiatives.  

“As an organisation [the BNA have] helped me to build strong relationships with industry peers, and over the years I’ve really seen how much they do to bring neuroscience community across the UK together. I value the opportunity to give back and represent industry neuroscience partners.”

Each Fortnight, we will also ask our featured individuals for Top Tips that they would give to you if you are looking to get into the neuroscience industry.

Here’s what Gary had to say:

“My top tip for those starting out would be to take any and all networking opportunities that come your way. You can find out more about what it means to be in the industry through attending conferences and reaching out to people on LinkedIn. Use it as an opportunity to discover where your real aspirations lie and learn more about different roles, so you can find your dream job. Don’t be afraid to just go for it!”

If you are interested in being a BNA Face of the Fortnight, find the details here. If you have any questions then please contact the BNA Office at office@bna.org.uk