Xiaodi W.

- Advise early-stage ventures on scientific positioning, product strategy, and investor-facing narratives, translating technical innovations into commercially compelling value propositions and long-term growth; - Partnered with a Northwestern-affiliated startup developing patent-protected cosmetic ingredients, providing strategic guidance on pitch refinement, market positioning, and industry alignment to enhance attractiveness to investors and potential acquisition partners; - Supported a mission-driven startup led by an MIT-trained founder in scaling strategy and platform development, advising on pipeline prioritization, scientific credibility building, and external visibility through publications, congress exposure, and academic collaborations

- Led scientific strategy for two dermatology-focused brands across China and broader APAC, aligning R&D, marketing, legal, clinical, and regulatory stakeholders to accelerate product development and launch four major franchises (including four hero products), contributing to $15M+ in annual revenue. - Designed and executed omni-channel scientific engagement programs at major international congresses and events (CDA, EADV, CIIE), orchestrating large-scale symposia (250+ attendees) and high-traffic booth activations (7,000+ dermatologists and consumers), strengthening clinical credibility and market positioning. - Developed and delivered a portfolio of scientific and decision-support materials, including peer-reviewed publications, patent filings, white papers, press articles, and technical reviews, enabling data-driven product positioning and strategic decision-making. - Represented brand in high-visibility external engagements, translating complex R&D insights into clinician-relevant narratives for 50+ dermatologists and clinicians, supporting stakeholder alignment and adoption of innovation initiatives. - Built and managed collaborations with 10+ external KOLs (dermatologists and academic researchers), leveraging expert insights to inform innovation strategy and strengthen scientific credibility; led engagement across advisory boards, PR initiatives, and media activations.

- Rotated across RD strategy, consumer insights, formulation and advanced technologies, contributing to end-to-end innovations with actionable outputs through 3 market analyses, 2 consumer studies, 1 new product launch, 2 exploratory innovation projects, and 3 capability platforms. - Led regular engagement with global/APAC leadership teams, distilling complex R&D insights into decision-ready recommendations; translated strategic direction into execution plans and proactively coordinated across R&D and commercial teams to track progress, resolve bottlenecks, and ensure on-time delivery.

- Advisor: Professor Julia Kalow - Dissertation: Design of Photo-Responsive Molecules and Study of Loops in Dynamic Covalent Networks

- Founded RSSI at Northwestern and implemented 10 safety initiatives in 5 STEM departments - Established partnerships with 8 companies such as Dow, BASF, VWR, securing $11k funding.

- Rebranded the group for organizational transition from female chemists to all women in STEM and coordinated social events to for female STEM researchers through professional development/community building

- Instructed a general chemistry course (12 incoming freshmen from McCormick and Weinberg) independently and was rated 5/6 overall from students.

- Advisors: Professor David Alberg and Professor Gretchen Hofmeister - Investigated mechanisms of organocatalyzed anhydride desymmetrization using a transition state analogue

Inaugural Research Safety Leadership Award Recipient

MiniMBA for Northwestern STEM Ph.D candidates

Starr Scholar

Singapore Ministry of Education SM1 Scholar