Ahsan Awan, Global CINRG Inc. Ross Bjella, DDN Pharmaceutical Logistics Laurie Cooke, The Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association (HBA) John Farinacci, ResearchPoint Dr. Thomas Hughes, Zafgen Greg Johnson, Strategic Business Research Rick Keefer, Publicis Strategic Solutions Group Tuan Ha Ngoc, AVEO Kyle Kennedy, The Medical Affairs Company Fred Hassan, Schering-Plough Dr. John Maraganore, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals William Maichle, Kowa Pharmaceuticals America Inc. Dr. Francoius Nader, NPS Pharmaceuticalss Dr. Engelbert Tjeenk Willink, Boehringer Ingelheim Andrew Witty, GlaxoSmithKline Angus Russell, Shire Pharmaceuticals Jeff Stein, Trius Therapeuticss Nader Naeymi-Rad, Campbell Alliance Donato Tramuto, Physicians Interactive Holdings Inc. Daniel Vasella, Novartis AG Laurent Schockmel, Cegedim Americas Name: Ahsan Awan Current Position: CEO, Global CINRG Inc. Education: MBA, George Washington University School of Business, 2007; J.D., University of Oregon School of Law, 2001; B.S., Political Science and Human Development, University of Oregon, 1997; working on MSP, Pharmacy and Applied Pharmacoeconomics, pending 2009, and MVM, Veterinary Medicine and Forensic Toxicology, University of Florida, pending 2010 Date and Place of Birth: Nov. 13, 1974, Sacramento, Calif. First Job: Laboratory research associate at the University of Wisconsin’s School of Medicine, Department of Immunology First Industry-Related Job: Director of Business Development for a multinational SMO Dream Job: Winemaker; because wine is the paradigm example of the confluence of art and science Professional mentors: J. Michael Gorman, Dr. Colin Taylor, and his father Hobbies: Feature-film screenwriting, Hawaiian hula dancing, and sports photography Connected Via: Facebook, LinkedIn Words to Live By: Be your word; drop the pretense; perseverance through adversity Redefining Science As President and CEO of Zafgen, Dr. Thomas Hughes’ contributions to science and business are creating positive change within the industry. The future is now for Thomas Hughes, Ph.D. A true innovator, Dr. Hughes continuously demonstrates a willingness to think creatively, not only with regard to scientific discovery but to business models. After a 20-year career with Novartis, Dr. Hughes, as president and CEO, is guiding the biotech company Zafgen to be a scientific innovator and develop novel therapeutics to treat obesity. His extensive knowledge of the role of genetics in Type 2 diabetes and his contagious passion for drug discovery and development have made him a pioneer in the field of metabolic disorders. And he has consistently drawn the best in the business to his endeavors. While at Novartis, he was instrumental in building a strong team, creating key alliances, and directing innovative drug-discovery efforts for metabolic programs. He oversaw the creation of a new diabetes-focused research group at the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR), which is focused on novel metabolic pathways involving mitochondrial oxidation and fatty acid metabolism. This group was extremely creative and scientifically forward-thinking in identifying novel drug targets and using genetic and genomic data arising from research partnerships with academia, which Dr. Hughes was instrumental in forging. His team’s lauded research led to the development of Novartis’ groundbreaking dipeptidyl peptidase (DPP-4) inhibitor program, which resulted in the first DPP-4 inhibitor, vildagliptin, now approved for use in the European Union. All subsequent DPP-4 inhibitors, including sitagliptin (Januvia) — the first approved in the United States to help lower blood sugar levels in adults with Type 2 diabetes — followed his pioneering work at Novartis. It was an exciting time for Dr. Hughes. He won’t forget the day his team got its Phase IIa clinical data from its first serious trial with NVP-DPP728, a DPP-4 inhibitor. He was completely stunned by the result, which was the first time anyone had seen what a DPP-4 inhibitor could do to improve glucose control with chronic administration in humans. Team building has been both a highlight and a source of angst for Dr. Hughes. In 2002, he was assigned the task of shutting down Novartis’ N.J.-based cardiovascular and metabolic disease area and picking a core team to jump-start new growth in Massachusetts. Eliminating more than 100 positions took him through some pretty dark and lonely places, and setting the direction for that new group and motivating them to perform required him to dig deep into the reasons why he did what he did. The experience was, he says, transformational. At Zafgen, Dr. Hughes has successfully aligned top-tier management and scientific advisory teams that include global experts in obesity, metabolic disorders, medicinal chemistry, and drug development. Zafgen’s breakthrough mechanism of action targets the vascular system that supports adipose cells, manipulating and shrinking the blood supply to the fat tissue and thereby driving loss of fat and a return to a more healthy body weight. The view of obesity as a biological-based condition is a brave new way of thinking about and approaching the disease, and under Dr. Hughes’s leadership the Zafgen team is not only providing scientific validation and merit for this view, but is developing therapeutics to potentially treat obesity. His innovative thinking is not limited to his successful scientific endeavors, but also to the way he has cultivated a unique business model for Zafgen. The company employs a virtual model for its corporate and clinical operations, allowing the team to execute its mission in the most capital-efficient manner possible. F Dr. Thomas Hughes and his research team were the first to show positive clinical results for a DPP-4 inhibitor in humans. Enthusiastic • Futuristic Name: Thomas Edward Hughes, Ph.D. Current Position: President and CEO, Zafgen Inc. Education: Ph.D., Nutritional Biochemistry, Tufts University, 1987; M.S., Zoology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1984; B.A., Biology, Franklin and Marshall College, 1981 Date and place of birth: May 1959, York, Pa. First Job: Busboy First Industry-Related Job: Postdoctoral fellow at Sandoz, characterizing transgenic rats and mice to make human HDL proteins Dream Job: Running a combined bike shop and climbing gym Biggest Industry Challenges: Achieving efficiency in drug discovery, development, and marketing Connected Via: LinkedIn, Plaxo Words to Live By: Relax and just be yourself Donato Tramuto, CEO and Vice Chairman of Physicians Interactive, can analyze rapidly developing changes in healthcare and provide new insights into the way forward. Her diplomacy, discipline, creativity, operational excellence, and down-to-earth style of communicating make Laurie Cooke, CEO of the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association (HBA) a wonderful leader and inspiration to others. The HBA and the wider healthcare community are stronger because of how Ms. Cooke leads. A great mentor to many, Ms. Cooke believes that when the student is ready, the teacher will come. She says she is constantly finding mentors who teach her what she needs to know, and she gratefully benefits from their wisdom. She continues to seek opportunities to improve her knowledge base, saying aside from staying abreast of what’s going on in the industry and maintaining her pharmacy license, her major goal going forward is to gain her profession’s top achievement, which is the certification for association executives. A much-sought-after speaker, Ms. Cooke specializes in leadership development topics and team and organizational effectiveness, and she is an expert on delivering the results of the E.D.G.E. in Leadership Study, which outlines best practices in recruiting, advancement, and retention of women in the top ranks of the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, to individuals and company leaders. Her keen business acumen and ability to motivate others, along with a wealth of experience, industry knowledge, and innate ability to win others over, serve as the foundation on which she has built her success. She has a grace and style that endear her to all those with whom she interacts. Before joining the HBA as its first CEO, Ms. Cooke was on the executive management team at the Project Management Institute (PMI), a nonprofit association with almost 225,000 members, where she had the responsibility for strategy and execution of the products and services to promote and progress careers within the project management profession. Before PMI, Ms. Cooke spent 10 years in the pharmaceutical industry in progressively responsible positions in process improvement and team effectiveness, global project management, and Phase I biostatistics. Before joining the ranks of the pharmaceutical industry, Ms. Cooke was a pharmacist working in both hospital and community settings. Ms. Cooke has the added advantage of bringing a global perspective to her leadership style; she has lived and worked in Europe and New Zealand. One of the most challenging points in her career was when she moved with her family to New Zealand when her husband landed an assignment with the New Zealand government. Not only were qualifications nontransferable, surprisingly, the culture, even in the late 1980s encouraged women to stay at home. For two years, she learned a tremendous amount about how to continue to be a major contributor even though she wasn’t able to be a player in the healthcare arena. Her solution was community service, where she found that she could still be incredibly productive and rewarded. Despite the limitations, Ms. Cooke says it was a unique experience to be able to learn the Maori culture all the while spending time with her young children. Ms. Cooke takes particular pride in her two children, and notes that her son Phillip, now 23, who graduated from Drew with a degree in political science is about start a job in New York City Mayor Bloomberg’s office; and daughter Jessica, 21, with one year left at Hull University in England studying in business and marketing, is finishing a year’s internship working for Disney in that organization’s European headquarters in London. F ? Laurie Cooke Creating a Professional Edge Family: Husband, Peter; son Phillip, 23; daughter Jessica, 21 Hobbies: Movies, walking, cruising, traveling, and going to the opera Bucket List: Center court seats for a Wimbledon final; safari in Africa; visit the Taj Mahal; and cruise across the Atlantic Inspiration: The HBA Board of Directors Most Unusual Place Visited: Chiang Mai, Thailand A Little-Known Fact: She was serenaded by Morgan Freeman in an elevator in California
