I obtained my MSc and PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Dundee (Scotland). In 1999, I moved to the Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology in Tübingen (Germany) to work as a postdoc in the laboratory of Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard. Starting in 2000, I increasingly took over science management responsibilities at the institute. For example, I managed its public relations and outreach activities, organised scientific events and engaged in fundraising. As part of the latter, I co-wrote a successful application for a large EU-project, which I later managed. In 2005, I became a group leader at the Medical University of Vienna. However, in 2008, I decided that I was more passionate about science management and accepted the position as Director of Scientific Management at the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO) in Madrid (Spain). In 2010, I was offered the opportunity to help establish an entirely new research centre: The Institute of Molecular Biology gGmbH (IMB; www.imb.de) in Mainz. So, I returned to Germany as IMB’s Director of Scientific Management and as one of its very first employees (now one of around 250 in a thriving and very international institute). At IMB, my current responsibilities include: • Fundraising and project management • Internal & external communication, press & public relations, and outreach activities • The recruitment of directors, group leaders and PhD students as well as the training and career development of PhD students, postdocs and junior group leaders • The management of scientific events and social & networking activities • Strategic planning and policy development • IPR and technology transfer • Benchmarking, research evaluations and reporting In 2014, I obtained an MSc in Business Administration from Mainz’s University of Applied Sciences. In my (very limited) spare time, I advise start-ups on fundraising and investor pitching, am a member of Rhineland-Palatinate’s Bioethics Commission, the External Examiner of the Postgraduate Certificate in Creative Thinking, Innovation & Entrepreneurship of Trinity College Dublin (Ireland) and am a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the European Innovative Training Network (ITN) “ImageInLife”. I also teach Science Management at various institutions, currently mainly in Germany and Italy, e.g. as a Visiting Professor at the University of Padua. My teaching activities focus on project management, communication, fundraising and career development.

Curriculum PDF File

My past research focused on the genetics and cell biology of eye development in vertebrates and synaptogenesis and the remodeling of synapses in the vertebrate brain. I also have a strong interest in the history of science, esp. the discovery of DNA, the connection between science and art, and have written articles on science management and communication. I wrote four books, 12 book chapters and approx. 50 scientific articles. My current H-index is 34. In addition to scientific publications, I have authored over 50 interdisciplinary & popular scientific articles, incl. in leading magazines, such as Scientific American, American Scientist, and The Scientist). Articles I wrote were translated into over 20 different languages.

Dahm R, Byrne J and Wride MA (2019): Interdisciplinary communication needs to become a core scientific skill. BioEssays, Vol. 41(9):e1900101; doi: 10.1002/bies.201900101Dahm R and Banerjee M (2019): How we forgot who discovered DNA: Why it matters how you communicate your results. BioEssays, Vol. 41(4):e1900029 (3 pages). doi: 10.1002/bies.201900029 Banerjee M, Wohlmann A and Dahm R (2017): “Living Autobiographically”: Concepts of Aging and Artistic Expression in Painting and Modern Dance. Journal of Aging Studies, Vol. 40, p. 8-15 Dahm R: Interdisciplinarity as a key driving force for innovation. p. 540-542 in “American Lives”, Alfred Hornung (ed.), 563 pages, Universitätsverlag Winter Heidelberg, 2013. ISBN: 978-3-8253-6179-2 Dahm R (2010): From Discovering to Understanding: Friedrich Miescher’s attempts to uncover the function of DNA. EMBO Reports, Vol. 11(3), p. 153-160

Last update: 21/04/2022