discovery within the academic setting. Often, groups grow organically

from academic research laboratories, exploiting a particular area of novel

biology or new technology. However, increasingly, new groups driven by

industrial staff are emerging with demonstrable expertise in the delivery of

medicines. As part of a strategic review by Cancer Research UK (CR-UK), the

drug discovery team at the Manchester Institute was established to translate novel research from the Manchester cancer research community into drug discovery programmes. From a standing start, we have taken innovative approaches to solve key issues faced by similar groups, such as hit finding and target identification. Herein, we share our lessons learnt and successful strategies.