Organovo CEO and leadership

Entrepreneur, CEO, and board member with extensive experience in transforming companies to high-value businesses in biotech, R&D/CRO services, and life sciences. Deep organizational and leadership experience building and managing global teams in complex high-tech environments spanning drug and platform discovery, development, and commercialization. Extensive record of leading successful financing rounds, IPOs, strategic partnerships, leveraged buyouts, strategic alternatives, and M&A. Public and private Board experience as Chairman, Lead Director, CEO, and Acting President. Committee work, including Special Committees, M&A, Compensation, and Audit. Have led successful Board searches for CEO’s and other C-Level positions including executive coaching and mentoring.Available to serve on public and private boards, including lead operational board roles and interim executive positions. Hands on orientation ideal for committee roles, executive recruiting, mentoring, and strategic / special committee engagement. Experienced in USA (East Coast, West Coast, Midwest) and European (German) boards.

Prior to founding Viscient, he held research leadership positions at Ardea Biosciences, a member of the Astrazeneca group, and Ligand Pharmaceuticals. His responsibilities at Ardea covered the Biology program as it relates to discovery, preclinical, translational and clinical development. He was Head of Molecular and Cellular Biology at Ligand Pharmaceuticals. He is a Faculty Advisor and Molecular Biology Institute Associate at San Diego State University and is a Scientific Advisory Board Member for ARTA Bioscience. His Ph.D. graduate work was conducted in Virology at Oregon State University with a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of California San Francisco in glucocorticoid gene regulation. He has drug discovery experience in the Inflammation, Oncology, Endocrine and Cardiovascular drug discovery therapeutic areas and his work has led to or enhanced the development of multiple marketed compounds. His target areas of expertise include Nuclear Receptors, Kinases and Transporters. He has published over 60 peer reviewed articles and book chapters and is an inventor on multiple patents.