People On The Move

GW appoints president of North America, relocates CEO to U.S.

Julian Gangolli has become president, North America, for GW Pharmaceuticals plc. The company is additionally relocating CEO Justin Gover to the United States.

Before joining GW Pharmaceuticals, Gangolli was, from 2004 until April 2015, president of the North American Pharmaceutical division of Allergan Inc. He had responsibility for a 1,400-person integrated commercial operation with sales exceeding $3.8 billion in 2014. As a corporate VP and member of the executive committee, Allergan’s most senior leadership team overseeing worldwide operations, Gangolli was an integral part of the executive management team that transformed Allergan into one of the leading specialty pharmaceutical companies in the United States. Gangolli joined GW in June and is expected to be appointed to the company’s board of directors.

“As Epidiolex nears its final stages of clinical development and as GW prepares for future U.S. launch, the time is right to start building our in-house U.S. commercial infrastructure,” says Dr. Geoffrey Guy, chairman of GW. “Julian’s deep experience at building and running a major U.S. pharmaceutical business built on specialty products will be complemented by the relocation of Justin to the U.S. with his intimate knowledge of GW, its products and pipeline. Together, they will spearhead GW’s growth in the U.S. and help to bring much needed new treatments to patients.”

“I am very excited about building a meaningful commercial presence in the U.S. for GW. As exemplified by Epidiolex, a potentially important new treatment in the field of pediatric epilepsy, GW’s products, if approved, offer the prospect of making a meaningful difference to patients’ lives,” Gangolli says. “I wish to bring my experience of building a successful business for Allergan to GW and look forward to working with Justin and the entire GW team to optimize the company’s prospects in this key market.”

GW will locate its U.S. operation in Southern California where Gangolli and Gover will be based. GW is also continuing to expand its UK manufacturing and R&D operations in preparation for future commercialization as well as pipeline development. GW currently employs 325 staff in the UK, up from 190 two years ago.

As president of North America Pharmaceuticals, Gangolli’s responsibilities represented more than 50 percent of Allergan’s revenue, 60 percent of its profit, and over 60 percent of its year-on-year profit growth. He was responsible for four business units supporting each of the specialty areas of Ophthalmology/Optometry (Eye Care), Neurosciences, Urology, and Medical Dermatology for the United States and Canada, each of which are considered category leaders in their respective therapeutic areas.

In addition to his commercial responsibilities, Gangolli had responsibility for strategic planning, business development, research, and product development planning for the North American division. Before his role as president, North America, Gangolli was senior VP, U.S. Eye Care, at Allergan from 1998 to 2004. Allergan’s Eye Care business unit grew from $150 million in 1998 to more than $2.3 billion in 2014 and is considered the leading ophthalmic pharmaceutical company ranked by quality and service with U.S. ophthalmologists.

Before Allergan, Gangolli was VP of sales and marketing at Vivus Inc. where he established from inception a fully functioning commercial operation. Before Vivus, Gangolli held roles at Syntex Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Ortho-Cilag Pharmaceuticals Ltd. in the United Kingdom. He grew up and was educated in the United Kingdom and is a U.S. citizen.

Founded in 1998, GW is a biopharma-ceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing novel therapeutics from its proprietary cannabinoid product platform in a broad range of disease areas. GW commercialized the world’s first plant-derived cannabinoid prescription drug, Sativex, which is approved for the treatment of spasticity due to multiple sclerosis in 27 countries outside the United States.

GW is advancing an orphan drug program in the field of childhood epilepsy with a focus on Epidiolex, which is in Phase III clinical development for the treatment of Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. The drug is additionally expected to enter Phase III clinical trials in the treatment of tuberous sclerosis complex.

PHARMA

• Sanofi has made Suresh Kumar a new member of the executive committee, in the position of executive VP, external affairs.
In this newly created role, Kumar will be responsible for defining Sanofi’s vision for meeting global health challenges. This will include setting the strategy and priorities for public affairs activities, interactions with governments and international organizations – and aligning internal and external communications around these priorities. As part of bringing these activities together in a more integrated way, the communications and corporate social responsibility teams will report to Kumar.
Kumar was a partner with Oliver Wyman leading the firm’s Public Sector Practice and as part of the Health and Life Sciences Team.
Zhen Su, the global head for the prostate cancer drug Jevtana, and David-Alexandre Gros, chief strategy officer, have left Sanofi to pursue other opportunities.

• Manvinder Singh (Vindi) Banga will join GlaxoSmithKline plc’s board as a non-executive director on Sept. 1, 2015. Saputo will manage and implement employee communications throughout the Americas region. Saputo was most recently at AbbVie Inc., where she managed global human resources, internal communication.

• Jennifer Saputo has been appointed to the role of associate director, employee communications, at Astellas. The position is part of the company’s newly formed corporate affairs department. Saputo will manage and implement employee communications throughout the Americas region. Saputo was most recently at AbbVie Inc., where she managed global human resources, internal communication.

BIOTECHNOLOGY

• Jeff Poulton has been selected as chief financial officer and a member of the executive committee at Shire. Poulton additionally joins the Shire board of directors. Poulton has served as interim chief financial officer since December 2014. As chief financial officer, he will remain based in Lexington. An experienced pharmaceuticals and biotechnology executive, Poulton has extensive experience across financial, commercial and strategic leadership roles. He joined Shire in 2003.

• Ronald A. Martell is executive chairman of KaloBios Pharmaceuticals Inc. Martell currently serves as a member of the KaloBios board of directors. In this new role, he will work directly with the company’s senior management team to refine and execute on the strategic plan to transition KaloBios to a focused monoclonal antibody company developing therapeutics for orphan oncology indications with high unmet medical need. Martell assumes the duties of former board Chairman Ted W. Love, M.D., who will continue to act as lead independent director on the KaloBios board. Martell has more than 25 years’ experience building and managing unique businesses in the biotech industry, and most recently served as CEO at Sevion Therapeutics.

• Jonathan Lloyd Jones is now chief financial officer at Neuralstem Inc. Most recently, Mr. Lloyd Jones served as chief financial officer at Columbia Laboratories Inc. (now known as Juniper Pharmaceuticals Inc.)

• Jonathan P. Graham will become senior VP, general counsel and secretary of Amgen Inc. effective July 13, 2015. He is responsible for Amgen’s legal operations, reporting to Robert A. Bradway, chairman and CEO. Graham succeeds David J. Scott, who retires Aug. 31, 2015.
Graham joins Amgen from Danaher Corp., where he served as senior VP and general counsel, responsible for all legal, governance, regulatory, risk, and compliance matters.

• Maureen Early has joined Synthetic Biologics Inc. in the newly created position of VP, commercial. Steven A. Shallcross was appointed chief financial officer, treasurer, and secretary. Shallcross replaced C. Evan Ballantyne, who left the company to pursue other interests.
In her new role, Early will lead all commercial and marketing efforts for the company’s current and future product portfolio. She was president and co-founder of Upside Endeavors, a privately owned, independent medical strategic and communications company. Before founding Upside Endeavors, Early worked for Rhone Poulenc Rorer/Aventis in various medical and marketing roles in the areas of infectious disease and oncology.
Shallcross was executive VP and chief financial officer of Nuo Therapeutics Inc. and before then served as senior VP and chief financial officer of Middlebrook Pharmaceuticals Inc.

• Alise Reicin, M.D., is appointed senior VP, head of global clinical development at EMD Serono, the U.S. biopharmaceutical business of Merck KGaA. Reicin served as VP, project and pipeline leadership, oncology franchise at MSD.

SPECIALTY PHARMA/SPECIALTY BIOPHARMA

• Neal Muni, M.D., MSPH, has become president of CutisPharma. Muni replaces Indu Muni, Ph.D., who founded CutisPharma in 1998. Indu Muni will remain chairman of the board. CutisPharma is a specialty pharmaceutical company that develops and distributes bulk drugs in kits used by pharmacists to create compounded medications.

• Jennifer Simpson, Ph.D., was named president and CEO of Delcath Systems Inc. effective immediately. Dr. Simpson served as interim president and CEO of Delcath since September 2014 and as interim co-president and co-CEO from September 2013 to September 2014. She joined Delcath in 2012 as executive VP, global marketing. Delcath Systems is a specialty pharmaceutical and medical device company focused on oncology with a principal focus on the treatment of primary and metastatic liver cancers.

• Michael Williams has been appointed to the newly created role of chief operating officer of Intarcia Therapeutics Inc. Williams reports directly to Kurt Graves, who serves as chairman, president and CEO, and is a member of the leadership team. James P. Brady has been hired as VP, human resources, and also reports directly to Graves.
Before joining Intarcia, Williams was head of global marketing for Takeda Pharmaceuticals where he was responsible for establishing Takeda’s first global marketing organization that included global market access, customer insights, and global brand management. Brady most recently worked at Genzyme Corp. for almost a decade, half before and half after the Sanofi acquisition. He was senior director and head of global industrial operations learning and development at Genzyme, a Sanofi Company.
Intarcia Therapeutics is an independent, privately held biopharmaceutical company developing therapies to enhance treatment outcomes by optimizing and improving the efficacy, continuous administration, and tolerability of drug therapies.

• Mark W. Durand has become chief financial officer of Sorrento Therapeutics Inc. Most recently, he was an independent strategic consultant for emerging pharmaceutical firms. Before that, he was chief financial officer and senior VP, finance and business development, for Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. (now Actavis Inc.). Sorrento is an oncology company developing new treatments for cancer and associated pain.

• Lee Morley has been appointed CEO of EUSA Pharma. Bryan Morton, who established EUSA Pharma as founder and first CEO, becomes executive chairman.
Morley joins the company from Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc, where he was VP, head of commercial for Europe and international markets. At Jazz, he had responsibility for the original EUSA Pharma business following its acquisition in 2012, until the recent launch of EUSA as a newly established independent company with the EUSA Pharma brand name, which was acquired from Jazz in March 2015. EUSA Pharma is a profitable specialty pharmaceutical company with commercial operations in the United States and Europe, and a wider distribution network in approximately 40 countries around the world.

• Frank Rotmann has been appointed VP and head of European operations, Merus Labs. Rotmann most recently held the position of VP for Central Eastern Europe for Takeda Pharmaceuticals. Rotmann has also held European and U.S.-based leadership roles at Eli Lilly, Sanofi, Altana, and Nycomed. Merus Labs is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on acquiring established products, leveraging its expertise in European and North American markets to optimize the value of underdeveloped pharmaceutical assets.

• Dr. Edwin S. Kamemoto has been promoted to the newly created position of executive VP, R&D and quality, at Alexza Pharmaceuticals Inc. Dr. Lori H. Takahashi has been promoted to the newly created position of VP, pharmaceutical R&D and quality. Alexza Pharmaceuticals is focused on the research, development, and commercialization of novel, proprietary products for the acute treatment of central nervous system conditions.

• John B. Thomas was appointed executive VP, strategy and investor relations, at Horizon Pharma plc. He reports directly to Timothy P. Walbert, chairman, president and CEO, effective immediately. Thomas joins the company’s executive committee and will lead the company’s investor relations function and oversee corporate strategy development. Thomas is the former VP of investor relations and public affairs for Abbott. Horizon is a specialty biopharmaceutical company focused on improving patients’ lives by identifying, developing, acquiring and commercializing differentiated products that address unmet medical needs.

• Donna M. Hughes has been appointed senior VP, human resources, at Impax Laboratories Inc. Deborah M. Penza joins the company as senior VP, chief compliance officer. Both report to President and CEO Fred Wilkinson.
Hughes joins Impax from Actavis, where she was VP, labor and employment, and a member of Actavis’ global leadership team and human resources leadership team. Penza also comes from Actavis, where she was chief compliance officer.
Impax Laboratories is a specialty pharmaceutical company applying its formulation expertise and drug-delivery technology to the development of controlled-release and specialty generics in addition to the development of central nervous system disorder branded products.

• Kelly Huang, Ph.D., joins Galderma as VP and general manager of the company’s Aesthetic and Corrective Business Unit in the United States. Chuck Paschke was named senior director of Organizational Health. Paschke has been with Galderma more than 18 years and most recently served as Galderma’s senior director leadership, Commercial Excellence.
Before coming to Galderma, Dr. Huang served as president of Endo Pharmaceuticals’ HealthTronics division, a urology device and services company.
Galderma’s product portfolio is available in 80 countries and treats a range of dermatological conditions.

• Dr. Bill Aurora has joined Neurocrine Biosciences Inc. as VP, medical affairs. Prior to joining Neurocrine, Dr. Aurora was VP, Global Center for Scientific Affairs at Merck & Co. Neurocrine Biosciences discovers and develops innovative and life-changing pharmaceuticals, in diseases with high unmet medical needs, through its novel R&D platform, focused on neurological and endocrine based diseases and disorders.

• Andrew C. Lam is appointed VP of product development at Armetheon Inc. Mr. Lam had served as a consultant to Armetheon, but prior to coming to the company, he was VP of product development at Altheos Inc. Armetheon is a specialty pharmaceutical company developing novel small molecule drugs for cardiovascular diseases.

• Sarah DeRossett, M.D., Ph.D., has been appointed to the position of VP of clinical research and medical affairs at BioDelivery Sciences International Inc. Dr. DeRossett had been at GlaxoSmithKline in the neurosciences therapy area, where she was responsible for leading the clinical development of a number of compounds in a variety of areas including those for Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, restless leg syndrome, and neuropathic pain.
BioDelivery Sciences International is a specialty pharmaceutical company with a focus in the areas of pain management and addiction medicine.

• William Stewart and Jessica Wolfe have joined the executive team of Scilex Pharmaceuticals Inc. Stewart is VP of market access and commercial development and Wolfe is director of payer advocacy and government affairs.
Stewart joins the company from InVentiv Health, where he assisted emerging pharma companies in building the commercial infrastructure necessary for the launch of prescription pharmaceutical products. Wolfe also comes from InVentiv Health, where she was director of advocacy and government affairs.
Scilex is an emerging specialty pharmaceutical company engaged in the development and commercialization of late-stage pharmaceutical products focused on the treatment of pain.

• Harriet Shelare is director of communications at Celsion Corp. Shelare was executive VP for Ruder Finn Public Relations. Celsion is a fully integrated oncology company focused on developing a portfolio of innovative cancer treatments, including directed chemotherapies, immunotherapies, and RNA-based or DNA-based therapies.

SERVICE COMPANIES

• Tim Dietlin has been appointed as a partner, Healthcare and Life Sciences practice, to Heidrick & Struggles’ Washington, D.C. office. Katie Bell has joined the company’s Atlanta office as a partner, Healthcare and Life Sciences. Before joining Heidrick & Struggles, Dietlin served as a partner at IBM and led the firm’s Life Sciences Strategy and Transformation consulting practice. Prior to IBM, Dietlin was the senior VP of Global Consulting and Strategic Alliances with INC Research and a VP at Campbell Alliance, where he led the R&D and Medical Affairs consulting practices. Bell served in numerous leadership capacities at The Advisory Board Company and Gallup. Heidrick & Struggles (heidrick.com) is the premier provider of leadership consulting, culture shaping and senior-level exec-search services.

• Dee Parson Grange and Mark Osterman have joined the Biopharmaceutical practice of Kineticos as senior VPs. Both report to James Forte, managing director of the Biopharmaceutical practice at Kineticos.
Prior to Kineticos, Parson Grange served in various cross-functional leadership roles at Bayer Pharmaceutical, Bayer Biologic Products (now part of Grifols), and Biolex Therapeutics. In addition, she has provided consulting services to global biopharmaceutical companies targeting rare diseases, biosimilars, biobetters, and novel therapeutic proteins.
Before joining Kineticos Osterman founded the Osterman Strategy Group, a boutique management consulting firm, where he worked with large and emerging biopharma companies as well as medical device companies to help solve their most challenging business issues.

• Gil Bashe is made managing partner of Finn Partners Health. Before joining Finn Partners, Bashe was health practice director at Makovsky & Company for 12 years. Finn Partners is a leading communications agency, specializing in the full spectrum of communications services, including digital and social media. Specialty areas include technology, consumer, education, travel & lifestyle, CSR, arts, health, and public and corporate affairs.

• Tom Jones, senior VP, and Alexandra Peterson, senior VP, have been tapped to lead the Health Practice at Makovsky & Co. Supporting Jones and Peterson is Lee Davies, senior VP, and Arielle Bernstein, group VP, as an extended leadership team led by Jones and Peterson. The new leadership structure was designed to accentuate strengths within the established team, and in preparation for the departure of long-time practice head, the aforementioned Gil Bashe. Before joining Makovsky, Jones was an executive director at Novartis, heading public relations programs in respiratory, dermatology, neuroscience, diabetes, arthritis, and gastrointestinal franchises. Peterson joined Makovsky in 2014, having worked at MSLGROUP, Ruder Finn, and Emanate.

• Tom Clark has been promoted into the role of executive VP of business development, at Publicis Touchpoint Solutions Inc. He was VP sales, leading Touchpoint’s field teams. Archie Robinson has been promoted to VP of sales and assumes overall responsibility for Touchpoint’s field sales and service teams, client services, and sales training. Robinson has more than 25 years’ experience in the industry. He joined Touchpoint in 2011 as national sales director and in 2012 assumed the position of general manger leading a key commercial organization. Publicis Touchpoint Solutions is a leading provider of customized, omnichannel healthcare sales, service, and clinical teams.

• Frank Saia has joined CMK Select as VP, business development. He is responsible for driving revenue and growth through building the business development organization, developing and managing the marketing strategy, defining new service offerings, and championing client engagement and retention. Saia previously served as general manager for Group DCA. CMK Select (cmkselect.com) provides best-in-class services anchored in a number of managed service offerings as well as Product Lifecycle Portfolio and Project Management for the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry.