Ian Henderson is a Professor of Microbial Biology and Executive Director of the Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB) at The University of Queensland, where he leads a large, globally connected biomedical research institute operating at the interface of discovery, translation, and industry partnership. Prior to moving to Australia, he spent nearly two decades in the UK, including serving as Director of the Institute of Microbiology and Infection at the University of Birmingham. There, he built one of the largest microbiology departments in the country, tripled research income, and established internationally recognised research, training, and industry-engaged programs. Since 2020, he has led IMB through a major period of transformation, introducing a clear, mission-driven strategy, strengthening governance and operational discipline, and investing in translational capability. His leadership is centred on converting excellent science into outcomes, products, platforms, partnerships, and long-term capability, while building organisations that deliver reliably at scale. Translation is a core priority. He established the Ignite Innovation Fund to support early-career researchers in commercialisation, and the Inflazome Translation Award to accelerate discoveries towards application. IMB now works closely with industry partners across biotechnology, vaccines, therapeutics, and platform technologies, as well as with hospitals, philanthropy, and government, to move ideas efficiently from lab to market. He places strong emphasis on people and capability. In the UK, he led a Wellcome-funded, cohort-based PhD training programme focused on solutions to antimicrobial resistance, designed to produce industry-ready researchers with strong technical, collaborative, and leadership skills. He has applied these principles at the University of Queensland and has mentored researchers who now hold senior roles across biotech, pharmaceutical, medtech, and innovation-driven companies. Alongside his executive leadership, he maintains an active, internationally recognised research program in bacterial pathogens, antimicrobial resistance, and vaccine development. His work is widely cited (h-index 71; >20,000 citations), has generated intellectual property, informed translational and commercial pathways, and delivered a therapeutic innovation to the clinic. He brings a pragmatic, partnership-driven approach to research leadership and values long-term collaboration with industry to build enduring value from science.