Welcome to this week's Chutes & Ladders, our roundup of significant leadership hirings, firings and retirings across the industry. Please send the good word—or the bad—from your shop to Darren Incorvaia or Zoey Becker and it will be featured here at the end of each week.
BMS banks on Wall St. vet for long-term strategy guidance
Bristol Myers Squibb
Bristol Myers Squibb didn’t want to choose between clinical expertise and financial know-how when selecting a new strategy leader. The Big Pharma has hired physician-turned-analyst Chris Shibutani, M.D., as executive vice president and chief strategy officer.
Shibutani has spent the last 25 years or so scrutinizing the industry as a financial analyst, including most recently as a senior analyst and managing director of biotech equity research at Goldman Sachs. Before that, he held the same job title at TD Cowen.
At BMS, he’ll be in charge of long-term strategy, including the pharma giant’s approach to external partnerships and institutional collaborations. Story
FDA's CBER head dons extra hats with new CMO, CSO titles
Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research
Vinay Prasad, M.D., has a new title to add on to his recently assumed role as the director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. He will also serve in the newly created position of chief medical and scientific officer, FDA Commissioner Martin Makary, M.D., announced in an internal memo seen by Fierce Biotech.
In the role, Prasad will serve as a “trusted advisor” to Makary and is expected to provide the commissioner with senior medical and scientific input on regulatory decisions while also acting as a representative at public-health-related medical meetings and forums.
Isomorphic Labs taps CMO, plants roots in Boston
Isomorphic Labs
U.K.-based artificial intelligence drug discovery company Isomorphic Labs is bringing on a new chief medical officer as it establishes a presence in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Ben Wolf, M.D., Ph.D., joins the team with nearly 20 years of industry experience under his belt, having most recently held the CMO role at Relay Therapeutics.
Wolf will be based at Isomorphic’s new location in Cambridge, where he will establish a group of “world-class biomedical talent.” The new site is the AI biotech’s first in the U.S. and should function as a “key operational hub,” according to the company. Release
> Solu Therapeutics is advancing its phase 1 leukemia asset with the help of new Chief Operating Officer Enda Moran, Ph.D. Release
> CNS specialist Quiver Bioscience has a new CEO in Graham Dempsey, Ph.D., who has been promoted from the CSO role. Release
> Maxion Therapeutics, a British biotech developing antibodies for diseases driven by ion channels and G protein-coupled receptors, has named Stefan Härtle, Ph.D., as chief development officer. Release
> Diagnostics-focused Hepion Pharmaceuticals has tapped board member Kaouthar Lbiati, M.D., as interim CEO to replace the retiring John Brancaccio. Release
> Jerry St. Peter is taking the reins at growing ocular health company PolyActiva from current CEO Vanessa Waddell as she pivots to the role of chief strategy officer. Release
> Atalanta Therapeutics named Douglas Pagán as its new chief financial officer and chief operating officer. He'll succeed Jeffrey Young in the positions. Meanwhile, Joanne Kotz will take over as new CEO to replace Alicia Secor, who is stepping down in favor of pursuing other opportunities. Release
> Edgar Charles, M.D., is hiking over to Climb Bio to serve as its chief medical officer after a 10-year tenure in leadership roles at Bristol Myers Squibb, most recently as immunology global program lead. Release
> Cardiff Oncology selected Amgen vet Roger Sidhu, M.D., to head up its lead clinical program as chief medical officer, taking the place of Fairooz Kabbinavar, M.D., who will stay at the company in an advisory role. Release
> Evan Bailey, M.D., secured a promotion to chief medical officer after four years at rare-disease-focused Applied Therapeutics, while Riccardo Perfetti, M.D., Ph.D., is exiting after a seven-year run. Release
> At Tolremo Therapeutics, Florian D. Vogl, M.D., Ph.D., is taking over the chief medical officer seat from consulting Chief Medical Officer Alessandra Cesano, M.D, Ph.D. Release