Tag Archive for: GM

Gail Farnan, MBA Joins Vivex Biologics as General Manager, Wound Care

Life Science Partner is pleased to announce the recruitment of Gail Farnan as General Manager, Wound Care for Vivex Biologics.

Vivex Biologics, a leading regenerative medicine company that markets tissue technology products and cellular therapies focused on orthopaedic applications with an emphasis on spine related therapies, has developed a diverse portfolio of current products including cellular bone matrices, amniotic tissue, general orthopaedic treatments, and sports medicine products to meet the therapeutic demand in the areas of spine, dental, sports medicine, and wound care. 

The company has a robust Wound Care division that supports their Cygnus products, amniotic derived regenerative allografts used for tissue regeneration and healing.

Gail Farnan

As the company continues to grow its wide array of therapies, it needed a strategic leader who could take charge of one of their franchises. The recruitment of Farnan as General Manager, Wound Care will bring highly focused branding campaigns for the company’s sales forces.

Farnan was the Global Director of Marketing at Medtronic where she guided business development activities for a minimally invasive circulatory support platform called CircuLite. She influenced the education and training of senior leadership on the CircuLite platforms and modeled new global opportunities using qualitative and quantitative market research.

Before Medtronic, she was the Vice President of Marketing at Abiomed where she implemented new marketing strategies for the launches of their Impella platform. She was pivotal in raising U.S. market awareness and presence for the company’s corporate acquisition. Prior to Abiomed, Farnan was the Director of Global Marketing for Novoste Corporation and a Product Marketing Manager at Johnson & Johnson’s Cordis Corporation.

Farnan is a registered nurse by training who developed into a business leader that transformed the marketing landscape of the companies in her wake. Her arrival to Vivex Biologics will improve the Wound Care division with new leadership, strategies and communication tools. With this, the company plans for continued progress in the biologics space.

About Life Science Partner

Life Science Partner is a specialized executive search firm that recruits transformational leaders for healthcare and life sciences companies. Our high-touch, partner-led process ensures an exceptional level of service, while our backgrounds as physicians and industry executives enable us to efficiently deliver the brightest candidates in the medical device, biopharmaceuticals, diagnostics, and healthcare technology fields.

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Upayan SenGupta, MBA, Recruited to Become Vice President, General Manager, Health Sciences for Underwriters Laboratories

Former Director, Global Segmentation Program, GE Healthcare

Life Science Partner recruited Upayan SenGupta, MBA, an innovative senior medical device executive, to become Vice President and General Manager, Health Sciences for Underwriters Laboratories where he will lead The Company’s continued transformation of the Health Sciences business unit from a compliance and audit organization to a proactive participant in the registration and product development teams.

With over 15 years at GE Healthcare, SenGupta was most recently appointed to create and lead the newly formed Segmentation program focused on cutting-edge big data analytics to drive deeper customer centric process and product design.

During his tenure at GE, SenGupta strategically led partnerships across the Sales, Marketing and Supply Chain teams to simplify product offerings and cut costs to improve targeted solutions for customers worldwide. Throughout his career at GE, SenGupta provided innovative cross-functional leadership to The Company’s operations strategy, product development, supply chain planning and commercial operations.

“With a background in “internal consulting” to develop global manufacturing efficiencies and building new quality systems in one of the world’s largest healthcare products companies, SenGupta will be a major asset in his new role at Underwriters Laboratories,” stated Tom Callaway, MD, President and Founder of Life Science Partner.

SenGupta earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering with a minor in Economics from Purdue University and received his MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

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Lode Debrabandere to Lead Autoimmune Business Unit at Osiris Therapeutics

Life Science Partner brings clinical development and marketing talent to help launch first stem-cell therapy

Life Science Partner announces today the recruitment of Lode Debrabandere, PhD, former vice president, Neuroscience Business Unit of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company to Osiris Therapeutics to become general manager of Osiris Therapeutics’ Autoimmune Diseases business unit. 

Osiris is a privately-held biopharmaceutical company developing innovative technology for isolating and expanding messchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from donated bone marrow for therapeutic drug products.

In the past few years, Osiris has transformed from an early-stage, research-focused organization to a commercially-focused enterprise – as it prepares to complete trials and launch Prochymal in autoimmune -related disorders including the treatment of acute graft-versus-host-disease in patients receiving bone marrow transplantation, Crohn’s Disease, and other related diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.

“Osiris fits Debrabandere like a glove,” noted Tom Callaway, MD, founder and president of Life Science Partner.  “He has significant global regulatory and clinical development experience – and demonstrated global marketing strategy expertise that will accelerate the successful launch of Prochymal to help these patients.”

At Bristol-Myers Squibb, Debrabandere led an interdisciplinary team to evaluate the company’s portfolio of products and programs – and then implemented a market-driven realignment of resources to expand into infectious diseases and CNS.  Earlier he led U.S. marketing and global clinical development for UCB Pharma where he led the co-promotional agreements with Pfizer and Alza to rapidly grow sales of Zyrtec and Ditropan, respectively.  He began his career as a trainee to the CEO of UCB Pharma before joining the global company in clinical development, rising to director of global clinical operations.

A native of Belgium, Debrabandere  earned his Pharm.D and PhD (Pharmaceutical Sciences) and his MBA at University of Leuven.

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Andy Lux to Join Medtronic Sofamor Danek as General Manager, Warsaw Operations

Life Science Partner recruits a general manager and manufacturing operations expert from Baxter Healthcare

Life Science Partner announces the recruitment of Andrew (Andy) Lux to become general manager of operations for the Medtronic Sofamor Danek Warsaw facilities. Medtronic Sofamor Danek is a leading orthopaedic company and the fast growing division of Medtronic, Inc. 

The Company develops and manufactures products that treat a variety of disorders of the cranium and spine with worldwide sales reaching approximately $2 B and growing at  17%.  Lux will lead the 600-employee operation in Warsaw, Indiana, that manufactures spinal implants which are approximately 55% of the products manufactured within the Company.

Lux has considerable experience with the turnaround of manufacturing operations.  He joins Medtronic Sofamor Danek from Baxter Healthcare where he had worldwide responsibilities for the renal and transfusion product lines, including 5,000 employees in seven plants and $750 mm in cost of goods.

“Andy is highly qualified to run a complex manufacturing operation,” noted Cindi Roberts, vice president, Life Science Partner.  “Most importantly, he knows business and will make a great partner with Peter Wehrly as their business continues to grow exponentially.”

To some degree this role is a homecoming for Lux, as he was previously vice president of operations and research and development for Medtronic’s cardiac surgery division.  His general management skills were recognized when he became CEO of Biomec, a pacing leads company.  Earlier, he was vice president and general manager of the x-ray division of Picker International and vice president of operations of Johnson and Johnson’s Advanced Sterilization Products.  Other leadership roles at major corporations include Diasonics, Resonex and GE Medical Systems Business Group.

Lux earned his BS, Metallurgical Engineering at Cleveland State University, and his MS and Doctor of Science at MIT.  He received his MBA from the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve.

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