Our Story

More than a microbiome scientist, our pioneering CEO is a mom.

Colleen Cutcliffe has an impressive background leading and managing biology teams. She’s a scientist with a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Microbiology from Johns Hopkins University and has held senior positions at bioscience and pharmaceutical firms. She’s also a mom, not to mention our CEO.

Colleen and her two co-founders, John and Jim, saw an opportunity to apply next-generation DNA sequencing technologies and microbiological assays to the emerging microbiome science space. Using these data, they could create metabolic maps of the microbiome and use systems biology to make novel insights into the microbiome. This scientific trio was uniquely positioned to bring new products to the world.

It was her role as a mom, however, that inspired her to team up with her two former colleagues and create Pendulum. Colleen’s first daughter was born eight weeks prematurely. That meant instead of heading home that day with mom and dad, she was whisked away to the NICU for four weeks, receiving multiple doses of antibiotics as a precautionary measure due to her fragile state.

Multiple publications have shown the longer term chronic risks associated with early antibiotics. This led Colleen, John and Jim on their journey to find a safe solution for those who struggle with chronic issues that are the result of a disrupted microbiome. And, this set the stage for the vision of the company to create a new generation of natural products that have proven efficacy.

After nearly a decade of research, Pendulum Glucose Control was born and remains a central part of Colleen and her daughter's wellness.

Colleen Cutcliffe

CEO AND CO-FOUNDER

Colleen Cutcliffe is the Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Pendulum. She has more than 15 years of experience leading and managing biology teams in academia, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology. Prior to starting Pendulum, Colleen was the senior manager of biology at Pacific Biosciences and a scientist at Elan Pharmaceuticals. Colleen completed her postdoctoral studies at Northwestern’s Children’s Memorial Hospital. Colleen received her Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Johns Hopkins University and her B.A. in Biochemistry from Wellesley College.

I am excited to be at Pendulum working towards unlocking the promise of the microbiome and building products to improve the health and lives of millions of people. Leading a team of world-class experts in medicine, lab science, manufacturing, finance and commercialization who work together fantastically makes my job easy.

John Eid

CSO AND CO-FOUNDER

John Eid is the Chief Science Officer and co-founder of Pendulum. John has led technology development teams for nearly two decades in diverse areas that include advanced microscopy, single molecular detection and analyses, automated data acquisition systems, biophysical systems modeling, and genome sequencing applications. Prior to co-founding Pendulum, John was a principal scientist at Pacific Biosciences. John completed his postdoctoral research at the Rowland Institute at Harvard University, received his Ph.D. in Biophysics and Computational Biology at the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign and his B.S. in Applied and Engineering Physics from Cornell University.

“It is exciting to have a front row seat on the evolution of the microbiome field from a purely academic endeavor into a field that is actually helping people in the here and now.”

Jim Bullard

CO-FOUNDER

Prior to co-founding Pendulum, Jim served as a senior staff scientist at Pacific Biosciences. He completed his Ph.D. in Biostatistics at the University of California, Berkeley and his B.A. in Computing & Information Systems at Northwestern University. He has a passion for experimental design, programming languages, and taking long walks with his dog.

“I feel fortunate to have worked with smart, motivated people on interesting problems. Building products that help people is incredibly motivating.”

Adam Perlman

CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER

Dr. Perlman is board-certified in Internal Medicine and specializes in both integrative and functional medicine. With more than 25 years of clinical, entrepreneurial, and leadership experience, he most recently served as the Director of Integrative Health and Wellbeing at the Mayo Clinic. Prior to that, he served as the Associate Vice President for Health and Wellness for the Duke University Health System. Dr. Perlman received his BA from Tufts University, his MD from the Boston University School of Medicine, and his MPH from the Boston University School of Public Health.

"It is critical to educate people on how a targeted approach to a healthy gut microbiome can positively affect overall health and wellbeing to help them improve vitality and live their best lives."