Rami Suzuki, President and CEO, Moderna Japan Inc.

Just a 5% chance can produce infinite results

President and CEO of Moderna Japan Inc. Rami Suzuki(Rami Suzuki)

■ Profile
He received his PhD in Medicine from University College London in 1999, and after working as a postdoctoral researcher at Imperial College London, he worked in venture capital in the U.K. He then served as Executive Officer of Business Development at Eisai, Head of Business Development and Head of Medical Business Division at Janssen Pharmaceutical K.K., and CEO of Ferring Pharma K.K., before assuming his current position in November 2021.

Moderna Japan, the Japanese subsidiary of Moderna, has become known worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its president, Ranmi Suzuki, is also a mother of three. "I believe that being involved in the medical field is the reason I was born," says Suzuki, as we take a closer look at her career so far.

■He moved to the UK alone at the age of 15 as a student and then embarked on a career in medicine.

If I had to sum up my childhood in one word, I'd say I was "precocious." I spent all my time playing around until I was in junior high. I went to an integrated junior and senior high school, so I felt I couldn't continue like this until I reached high school, and so I asked my mother if I could study abroad in the UK to throw myself into a completely different environment. She said I could start from university, so I took the university entrance exam and went to study in the UK alone at the age of 15. However, the language barrier was much thicker than I had anticipated. Three years passed while I studied English, and before I knew it, I was old enough to be a regular university student.
I majored in pharmacology at university. When I was preparing for the university entrance exam, I focused on studying science subjects, which I was not good at, and before I knew it, I found science subjects more interesting than humanities subjects. I was particularly attracted to pharmacology because it allowed me to learn about things other than mathematics, such as Western medicine and the history of human health medicine.
When I was in my master's program, two friends at the same university were diagnosed with cancer. They were given medication despite the side effects being severe and little hope of effectiveness. Seeing them undergo such grueling treatment, I felt a strong urge to think, "This is so absurd. I have to fix this."
Then one day I had a memorable dream. I don't remember the details of the dream, but when I woke up in the morning, it suddenly dawned on me that I had been born to cure cancer. That was the trigger that made me decide to pursue a career as a medical doctor.
When I told the professor who was the head of the department at the time about my dream, he said, "In that case," and introduced me to a famous breast cancer surgeon at a university in the UK. This person also introduced me to breast cancer research in graduate school. While feeling the pressure to repay that connection and kindness, I continued working and have come to where I am today.

What are the attractions and challenges of Moderna, a unique company that has focused solely on mRNA?

I think Moderna is a very unique company that has focused solely on mRNA. Even before developing the COVID-19 vaccine, they invested over 400 billion yen in mRNA research and development over the course of 10 years. At the time, it was said that mRNA had little chance of becoming a medicine. However, even with continued losses, Moderna was a group of people who were passionate about the immeasurable impact that would be made if they were successful, even if the probability of success was only 1% or 5%. That was Moderna.
Moderna Japan currently has new drug candidates that can be used to treat 48 infectious diseases and cancers. Our purpose in life is to provide these drugs in Japan without delay compared to other countries.
How can we realize our purpose in life while also considering the work-life balance of our employees? This is our challenge going forward, and I think it's what makes our work so appealing.
Our company is focused on mRNA, but we are also working on gene editing and stem cells. In January of this year, we acquired a Japanese startup company to further accelerate the speed of vaccine production, and we are working to bring our vision to fruition as soon as possible by combining our internal and external resources.

■Why are you a business owner and what are your beliefs?

As a manager, what I value most is the potential that each person possesses. I can see the potential that each person possesses. My role as a manager is to draw out the potential that each person has beyond what they themselves imagine, and to create an environment where they can make full use of their talents.
And by connecting the capabilities of individuals to the organization, even greater results can be achieved. At such times, I feel extremely rewarded as a manager.
Also, if I had to name one motto for my work, it would be "continue to do what makes sense, steadily." When that effort bears fruit, it can lead to great results that exceed not only your own imagination, but anyone's. This idea is also true of the nature of science and the way our company operates. Even if you can't save someone tomorrow, if you continue to do what makes sense, steadily, it will produce results that can save many lives.

■Message to university students

There are truly many possibilities for students living in this era. This is because, compared to when I was a student and things like AI were not yet developed, we are now in an environment where we can realize what we want to do more quickly. Therefore, I urge you to continue challenging yourself to do what you want to do. I believe that the negative impact of trying and failing is about the same as the negative impact of not trying and regretting it. If you don't try, you won't gain anything, but you can learn from your failures. When in doubt, just do it. This mindset should be the driving force behind future growth, common to all things.

Interview with Student Newspaper Online on February 7, 2023 by Akane Isa, a fourth-year student at Toyo University