Elizabeth Iorns at Female Founders Conference 2014

Iorns built Science Exchange to address a problem she faced as a breast cancer researcher: labs often lacked the expertise or equipment to complete every experiment. She advises founders to validate that a problem matters to potential users, understand how they handle it today, and launch an MVP to gather feedback.

Iorns says a strong team needs people who care about the company’s vision, as well as varied skills. Science Exchange named its values FORCE: fearless, open, respectful, curious, and entrepreneurial. She also treats investors as long-term partners whose values should fit the company’s.

Science Exchange used quarterly planning and two-week sprints for both product and business teams, with brief daily check-ins. Iorns says this helped the team share progress and maintain momentum. She also recommends focusing on core work and using existing services for needs such as payments and hosted infrastructure.

Iorns encourages founders to do some work manually at first to learn what customers value. Science Exchange built close relationships with labs, developing trust and a detailed understanding of their expertise. It also used responsive customer support and a user-friendly experience to stand out in a field where these were less common.

Iorns says startups can fail when they run out of money or when founders give up. Science Exchange initially faced resistance after being labeled the “eBay for science,” which made some researchers see the company as outsiders. The team persisted in showing its scientific roots and commitment to improving research, building relationships that became a strength.