Dr Doug Brown, Chief Executive of the British Society for Immunology, has announced that he will step down from this role at the end of August 2025 to take up the position of Chief Executive at the Royal Society of Biology.
Doug joined the BSI in 2018 and has overseen a huge transformation in how the organisation operates, dramatically increasing the impact that we deliver for our immunology community across all areas including membership, careers, events, policy and training. He has led the development and delivery of an innovative new strategy and business model to secure the financial sustainability of the BSI through initiating new activities and partnerships to support UK immunology across the board. A vocal advocate for how immunology can change the world for the better, Doug has pioneered the BSI’s role at the forefront of driving a cohesive and interconnected immunology ecosystem that is ready to take on future challenges and have a positive impact on health.
Leading the organisation through the critical time of the COVID pandemic, Doug ensured that the BSI played a pivotal role, with a strong voice in policy circles, as well providing direct support to COVID research efforts and innovating new initiatives to support our wider immunology community. In 2020, Doug won ‘Executive Director of the Year’ at the Association Awards for his leadership of the BSI through the pandemic, with the organisation also picking up ‘Individual Member Association of the Year’.
“I am incredibly proud of all that the BSI has achieved during my time as Chief Executive,” said Dr Doug Brown. “It has been an enormous privilege to support our members in advancing knowledge, driving innovation, and making a real-world impact through immunology. I am hugely thankful to the exceptional staff team, Board of Trustees and committee members, whose passion, focus and expertise have enabled us to achieve so much. I will greatly miss working so closely with the immunology field, but I remain committed to championing the life sciences. As I step into the role of CEO at the Royal Society of Biology, I look forward to collaborating with the wider scientific community to deliver impact across the full breadth of biology.”
Professor Tracy Hussell, President of the British Society for Immunology, said, “On behalf of the immunology community, I would like to express our heartfelt thanks to Doug for his outstanding leadership of the BSI over the past seven years. Doug has been a champion for the BSI and immunology in every sense of the word. Through his expertise, dedication and ambition, Doug has transformed the organisation, driving forward an innovative strategy that has enabled us to reimagine how a learned society can deliver for their community, bringing in new activities to directly engage, support and advocate for immunology, while ensuring the long-term financial sustainability of the organisation. Doug’s leadership was never more valued than during the COVID-19 pandemic when he employed a multi-faceted approach to support research efforts and ensure that the expertise of the immunology community was fed into policy and public discussions.
Tracy continued, “While we are immensely sad to say goodbye, Doug leaves the BSI in a strong position to build on our current achievements and continue our delivery for the immunology community. We wish him every success in his new role at the Royal Society of Biology.”
The recruitment process to appoint Doug’s successor is now underway and will be overseen by our President, Professor Tracy Hussell. Further developments will be shared with the community in due course.