News and Insights

A UK biotech’s guide to navigating the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference

October 30, 2026

In this blog you will learn:

How the annual JPM Healthcare Conference in San Francisco differs in scale, pace and layout from UK events like Jefferies London
Key strategies for succinct and integrated messaging
How to balance meeting schedules with rapid-response media opportunities and networking
Tactical steps to convert quick handshakes into long-term investor and media relationships.

Every January, the global life sciences sector converges on San Francisco for the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference (JPM). The event marks the start of a new investment year, establishing the tone for the coming months. Fund managers have closed the books on the past twelve months and are ready to scout fresh opportunities to deploy capital. For UK biotech leadership teams heading to JPM for the first time, it can feel like stepping onto an entirely different playing field.

While UK executives may be well-versed in investor-focused events held here, like the Jefferies Global Healthcare Conference in London, JPM operates on an entirely different scale and rhythm. Understanding these differences, and preparing early, is the key to ensuring your company goes beyond attendance to engagement.

Jefferies London vs. JPM San Francisco: the fundamental differences

For UK biotechs, the Jefferies Conference in London is a familiar benchmark. Held almost at a single venue (this year hosted at The Waldorf Hilton Hotel on The Strand), Jefferies offers a structured, relatively contained environment with centralized meeting rooms and predictable schedules. By contrast, JPM is an entire ecosystem that overtakes San Francisco’s Union Square district. It can feel a bit like ‘trial by fire’ for first-timers. So, how do you make the most out of the four whirlwind days?

There are three key differences to bear in mind:

Scale and dispersion: while official JPM activities take place at the Westin St. Francis, the vast majority of meetings happen in hotel suites, rented co-working hubs, coffee shops and off-site receptions spread across several blocks
Pace: European meetings lean towards structured introductions, but JPM operates at high velocity… it’s go, go, go. Investors, analysts and media hold back-to-back 30-minute meetings from early morning to late afternoon. Then it’s off to dinners and cocktail parties for informal networking
Proof: US investors still maintain a high-risk tolerance for bold innovation (certainly more than UK and European investors), but they do demand hard proof points like data readouts, clinical enrollment momentum and clear regulatory milestones. JPM isn’t a stage for speculation and good intent. Now, capital is concentrated and directed towards teams that can prove disciplined strategy and clinical momentum.

Advice for planning ahead for JPM San Francisco

Success at JPM is determined months before you board your flight from the UK. The conference itself may be a four-day event but the effort is a multi-month campaign. A marathon, if you will, not a sprint (although sprinting from event to event is common whilst there!)

Here is some advice for planning ahead:

Secure your space and curate your schedule by location

Space in Union Square commands a massive premium during JPM week. You’ll need to secure your meeting suites, private tables, or co-working passes months in advance. You’ll also need to consider the time it takes to walk between venues on crowded pavements, which can eat into precious minutes between meetings, so try and cluster your meetings geographically to avoid literally running across town.

Ensure your IR and PR narratives are aligned

One of the most frequent missteps first-timers make is focusing on investor relations (IR) without the support of public relations (PR). While IR is a precision tool to help investor audiences understand the business model, financials and regulatory milestones, PR helps elevate your voice and visibility, reaching a broader stakeholder audience by putting patient impact and clinical utility at the heart of the narrative.

Both IR and PR are critical components in your storytelling in the run-up to JPM. Your messaging must be aligned to tell a cohesive story, so:

Keep your pitch concise: give executives concise and adaptable pitches that connect innovation with commercial viability and align clinical data with the risk-adjusted returns institutional investors and capital partners seek
Signal your readiness: utilize digital and earned media channels weeks ahead to speak about upcoming milestones, your views on the market opportunity and let potential investors and media know you’ll be on site.

Making the most of four days

Efficiency and adaptability are paramount at the event. You should:

Be agile: JPM moves fast, and market-moving news breaks constantly. Spokespeople must be ready to connect company milestones to broader industry themes during media briefings and investor meetings
Embrace serendipity: beyond formal, pre-booked meetings, some of the most valuable relationships at JPM begin by chance. A brief conversation in a hotel lobby, an introduction in a coffee line, or networking at evening receptions can spark long-term partnerships. Step out of your comfort zone, keep an open mind and get out there and be as social as your schedule allows.

Sustaining the momentum

When the hotels empty out, the sustained hard work begins. You must:

Be quick: follow up with contacts within 48 to 72 hours while conversations are top of mind. Yes, you’ll be utterly exhausted and jet-lagged after the long haul back to the UK, but don’t wait for your body clock to reset. Send those notes while the connections are still warm
Stay in touch: continue to share ongoing clinical progress, enrollment updates and regulatory filings with the investors and journalists you met. You are more likely to sustain market confidence and visibility if you can keep your company at the top of your contacts’ minds.

How FINN Partners can help UK companies win at JPM

Navigating the intensity of JPM requires local US expertise paired with an understanding of European life science dynamics. Our team has been supporting clients at JPM for decades.

At FINN Partners, our global health practice brings PR and IR together in one seamless strategy designed to help first-time attendees of JPM:

We align your scientific narrative with financial proof points to appeal directly to US healthcare investors while ensuring your PR story gives the broader picture of opportunity
We map out and secure key investor conversations on your behalf well ahead of time
We leverage our deep relationships across major financial outlets, biotech trade media and Wall Street analysts, to help you secure high-impact exposure before, during and after the event
We offer clients use of our own dedicated ‘hub’ at JPM for investor and media briefings, removing the stress of venue finding and logistics.

From navigating Union Square to rapid-response media opportunities, FINN Partners serves as an extension of your leadership team at JPM, helping elevate your voice and visibility on the biggest health investment stage in the world.

Heading to JPM and looking to make an impact? Find out more about FINN Partners and how we can help by dropping me an email at: sophie.taylor-roberts@finnpartners.com.

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Frequently asked questions

Q: How does the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference (JPM) differ from European investor events like Jefferies London?

A: JPM is a sprawling, city-wide ecosystem centered around San Francisco’s Union Square, with meetings held across hotel suites, co-working hubs, coffee shops and off-site receptions. In contrast, Jefferies London is typically contained within a single hotel venue with centralized rooms. The pace at JPM is significantly faster, with back-to-back 30-minute meetings taking place from early morning to late afternoon.

Q: Why do UK biotechs need to align both IR and PR strategies before attending JPM?

A: You need a single, cohesive narrative across media briefings, investor meetings and digital channels, so it is essential to align your investor relations (IR) and public relations (PR) strategies before JPM. IR will help investors evaluate your business model, clinical milestones and financial proof points, while PR will help elevate your broader narrative around clinical utility, market opportunities and patient impact.

Q: How far in advance should our leadership team start preparing for JPM?

A: You should start preparing now. There is high demand for meeting suites, private tables and co-working passes in Union Square, so securing them takes time. As you plan, don’t forget to build buffer time into your schedule for walking between scattered venues.

Q: How should I follow up with investor and media contacts after the event?

A: Send initial follow-ups within 48-to-72 hours while conversations remain fresh but don’t forget following up is an ongoing campaign; you should keep your contacts engaged with regular updates on clinical enrollment momentum, data readouts and regulatory filings to convert initial meetings into long-term market confidence.

Q: If we can’t get into the official JPM conference at the Westin, why should we go out there?

A: You don’t need a conference badge to make the trip worthwhile. While the official event inside the Westin is strictly invite-only, hundreds of investors, analysts from other investment banks, pharma business development teams and strategic partners travel to San Francisco specifically to conduct business across Union Square. Being on the ground puts you in the centre of the global life sciences ecosystem during the most concentrated week of capital allocation and partnering discussions of the year.