Conor O'Donoghue

Class of 2012-2013, Naughton Fellowship recipient

University College Cork, 2012
Civil & Environmental Engineering

Conor came to ESTEEM with a BE in Civil and Environmental Engineering from University College Cork in Ireland, after being awarded a Naughton Fellowship to study at Notre Dame. He was part of the UCC team involved in the invention of novel medical device, SecuRetract, currently under development by Skellig Surgical. Conor’s thesis involved developing a commercialization strategy for a novel production method for silicon carbide, a technology capable of producing the highest quality nanopowder in a more efficient process, making many applications cost-effective for the first time. He was also a member of two successful teams in Notre Dame’s McCloskey Business Plan Competition, helping in the early stages of founding Torigen Pharmaceuticals, bringing a personalized veterinary vaccine to market. Upon graduation, Conor joined enFocus, a talent incubator and social innovation engine founded by ESTEEM’s 2012 graduates. enFocus, a unique non-profit in South Bend, retains recent university graduates and empowers them to solve regional challenges to help bring transformative economic development to the community. After finishing his one-year fellowship at enFocus, Conor moved to San Diego in 2014, joining ZS Associates, a consulting firm focused on solving the most challenging sales and marketing problems for biotech and pharma clients.