Jeffrey Almond is the Head of Discovery Research and External R&D at sanofi pasteur, the largest manufacturer of human vaccines, and is based in Lyon, France. In his present role, he is responsible for sanofi pasteur’s portfolio of exploratory projects aimed at providing pre-clinical proof-of-concept for a range of human vaccine targets. He also identifies and assesses opportunities for external collaboration on vaccine targets and relevant technologies. Before joining sanofi pasteur in 1999, Jeffrey Almond was Professor of Microbiology at the University of Reading, UK, and served in various offices including chairman of the Virology Division of the International Union of Microbiological Societies, and international secretary for the Society for General Microbiology and member of the UK governmental Spongiform Encephalopathies Advisory Committee. He is currently a member of Council of the Medical Research Council, and an elected fellow of the UK Academy of Medical Sciences. He has published numerous articles in the field of Microbiology especially on influenza and picornaviruses, HIV and vaccines.