Kelly Macdonald on finance
From The Journey Of A Biotech CFO With Kelly MacDonald, CFO Dynavax Technologies · · Secrets of Rockstar CFOs
“Finance and Accounting were viewed as a strategic asset for the company as opposed to you know maybe a cost center or overhead or something like that. One of the biggest challenges is to sit with that constituency and learn about the biology and the clinical and Regulatory and Technical risk that's with any given clinical or preclinical program. It's equally challenging to share different Corporate Finance Concepts and different Corporate Finance perspectives, but we've been able to create touch points where there is mutual trust and education flow throughout the organization.”
On , Kelly Macdonald, Senior Vice President, Principal Accounting Officer & Chief Financial Officer at DYNAVAX TECHNOLOGIES CORP, spoke about finance during The Journey Of A Biotech CFO With Kelly MacDonald, CFO Dynavax Technologies on Secrets of Rockstar CFOs.
About Kelly Macdonald
Kelly Macdonald, Senior Vice President, Principal Accounting Officer, and Chief Financial Officer at Dynavax Technologies, discussed her role and the company’s evolution in a September 2024 podcast. Macdonald said she has been working to position the finance organization as a “strategic asset” to the company, aligning capital allocation with Dynavax’s strategic initiatives and long-term growth. She noted that she joined Dynavax in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic, describing the decision to work for a vaccine company and relocate from Boston to the Bay Area as a chance to align with a mission she believed in. Macdonald stated that she inherited a “very streamlined and even skeletal” team after a restructuring and acknowledged that the team was initially uncertain about a new leader from outside the region. Macdonald also shared perspectives on the evolving role of CFOs, describing them as expected to be strategic thinkers and subject matter experts across corporate finance and operations. She emphasized the importance of work-life balance, stating that 80-hour work weeks are not sustainable throughout a career and that being intentional about priorities is key. Macdonald added that she practices mentoring both formally and informally, and she described the Dynavax team as one that empowers each other and solves problems beyond finance.