of North Carolina
Mission
To bridge the gap between academia and industry by fostering a community where students, professionals, and industry leaders collaborate to drive operational excellence, innovation, and career development in the life sciences sector.
Vision
To build a sustainable, high-impact ecosystem where operational excellence transforms organizations, empowers professionals, and accelerates life sciences innovation in North Carolina and beyond.
Meet the Team
Meet our team of dedicated professionals, each bringing a wealth of expertise in operational excellence, life sciences, and design. Together, we’re committed to driving innovation, continuous improvement, and delivering impactful results. Our collaborative approach ensures we achieve the highest standards in everything we do.
Board of Directors
Leadership Team
Cristina Maldonado
Founder & Chair
Cristina Maldonado is a leader in operational excellence with a background in business
operations and process optimization in the life sciences industry. She has successfully led
initiatives that streamline workflows and drive measurable impact. Cristina has experience in
Lean methodologies, portfolio management, and implementing site-wide solutions that have
delivered millions in cost savings and operational improvements. She has a Bachelor’s in Molecular Biology and is currently pursuing an MBA at NC State University, further strengthening her expertise in business strategy and organizational development. Passionate about innovation and continuous improvement, Cristina is committed to building a collaborative community that empowers professionals to drive excellence in their organizations.
Christine Cousineau
Logistics & Operations
Christine Cousineau has a Bachelor's of Science in Forensic Science from Madonna University and 5 years of experience in Biotech-Biopharma Research and Manufacturing. She began her career in Ann Arbor, Michigan developing and manufacturing Covid-19 PCR test kits. In late 2021 she moved to Durham, North Carolina to expand her resume and explore possible career paths in the Life Sciences. During her transition into Gene and Cell Therapy research, development, and production she learned about Operational Excellence (OE). She saw the impact and benefit first-hand and recognized the current knowledge gap that exists in the industry around OE. Christine's passion for creative problem solving and drive to streamline
everything that crosses her path, is exactly what Operational Excellence demands!
Mitra Abab
Mitra is a cross-industry leader and innovator with a background in life sciences to hospitality to entertainment. She guides both digital strategy and creative direction within the operational excellence space, while championing human performance and error reduction across teams.
Certified in NLP, Mitra integrates behavioral insight with lean systems and visual management to enhance performance, decision-making, and collaboration. Known for her expertise in continuous improvement and her ability to deliver meaningful, people-centered results, she helps organizations build resilient, efficient systems by aligning people, purpose, and process.
Creative . Digital