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 Gabrielle Masson and it will be featured here at the end of each week.
Biogen boosts C-suite with BMS vet
Biogen
Biogen is tapping some top pharma talent to lead its medical efforts. Daniel Quirk, M.D., is the biotech’s new chief medical officer and head of medical affairs. Quirk formerly served as a senior vice president at Bristol Myers Squibb, including in worldwide medical affairs for immunology and neuroscience and in U.S. medical affairs. Not content with just one shake-up, Biogen is also elevating Chief Accounting Officer Robin Kramer to the role of chief financial officer, replacing Michael McDonnell, who is set to retire on Feb. 28, 2025. Release & Release
Former Seagen CEO heads up newly emerged Ottimo Pharma
Ottimo Pharma
Seagen’s former CEO David Epstein’s next project has been revealed as Ottimo Pharma, which has emerged from stealth mode after three years of preclinical work on its lead asset, a PD1-VEGFR2 bifunctional antibody dubbed jankistomig. Joining Epstein on the leadership team is Boehringer Ingelheim’s former chief medical officer Mehdi Shahidi, M.D., as head of development and chief medical officer plus BioMarin’s chief business officer James Sabry, M.D., Ph.D., as board vice-chair. Now, the company is aiming for a 2025 IND filing for jankistomig, which could rival Merck’s dominant Keytruda if approved. Story
Co-founding MacroGenics CEO makes exit
MacroGenics
After 23 years at the helm of antibody-focused oncology company MacroGenics, co-founder Scott Koenig, M.D., Ph.D., is stepping down as president and CEO effective Feb. 28, 2025. The MacroGenics board has hired a search firm to find a successor. Prior to MacroGenics, Koenig was senior vice president of research at MedImmune, and, before that, he worked for six years at the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Release & Filing
> Effective Nov. 1, Alberto Santagostino is the new CEO and president of global CDMO AGC Biologics. Release
> Genetic medicines firm Ensoma is prepping for its first IND submission by appointing Jon Garen as chief corporate development and business officer. Release
> Jeymi Tambiah, who previously worked at Biosplice and UCB, took the spot Lachy McLean M.D., Ph.D., left at Genascence as chief medical officer. Release
> Kyowa Kirin’s president Masashi Miyamoto, Ph.D., will take the reins as CEO while current Chief International Business Officer Abdul Mullick, Ph.D., is to serve as president and chief operating officer under the company's new dual leadership structure. Release
> Mosaic Biosciences is bolstering its leadership team with industry vets Tracey Mullen as chief strategy officer, Christilyn Graff, Ph.D., as head of research and Luyuan Mendhi as chief financial officer. Release
> Germany’s Secarna Pharmaceuticals tapped Chief Business Officer Konstantin Petropoulos, Ph.D., to take over as CEO while Alexander Gebauer, M.D., Ph.D., steps down to lead his co-founded Galimedix Therapeutics. Release