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.
Neumora overhauls C-suite after phase 3 flop
Neumora Therapeutics
After its depression candidate failed a phase 3 trial and disappointed analysts, Neumora is shaking up its leadership team. President and CEO Henry Gosebruch is leaving the company effective Feb. 14, and will be replaced as CEO by co-founder Paul Berns and as president by Joshua Pinto, Ph.D. Additionally, Bill Aurora and Michael Milligan are stepping in as chief operating and development officer and chief financial officer, respectively. Gosebruch joined Neumora in July 2023 after serving as chief strategy officer at AbbVie for seven years. Release
Lycia lands veteran CMO
Lycia Therapeutics
Founded by Nobel Prize-winning chemist Carolyn Bertozzi, Ph.D., Lycia has unveiled its immunology pipeline and the man charged with leading it. Chin Lee, M.D., has joined the company as chief medical officer to guide the company’s two lead protein degradation therapies through clinical development. Lee joins from Allakos, where he held the CMO title, and has previously worked as a medical director at Eli Lilly, Genentech and Abbott (now AbbVie). Release
Navigator arrives at new CEO
Navigator Medicines
Navigator Medicines has landed on a new CEO in Tausif ‘Tosh’ Butt, who joins the young company from his prior role as president at Idorsia Pharmaceuticals. Butt has more than two decades of leadership experience that includes jobs at AstraZeneca, GSK and the chief operating officer position at ChemoCentryx until its $3.7 billion Amgen buyout. Navigator, which began its journey last year as a subsidiary of Sera Medicines, is working on NAV-240, a clinical-stage bispecific antibody against OX40L and TNFα that recently wrapped up a phase 1a study. With Butt at the helm, Navigator will explore multi-dose studies and the other OX40L-targeted antibodies it collected from a 2024 licensing deal with Korea’s IMBiologics, which centered on NAV-240. Release
> Cognito Therapeutics built out its executive team with several new appointments including Steve Worthy in the chief business and financial officer role, Robbert Zusterzeel, M.D., Ph.D., as chief clinical and regulatory officer, Deanna Angello for chief commercial officer and Pritesh Shah as chief strategy officer. Release
> Experienced oncology executive Klaus Edvardsen, M.D., Ph.D., is taking the chief medical officer role at RNA-focused Epitopea. Release
> Imunon tapped Douglas Faller, M.D., Ph.D., to serve as chief medical officer as the company works toward a phase 3 study for its lead program. Release
> Aro Biotherapeutics’ CEO and co-founder Susan Dillon, Ph.D, is stepping down to take an advisory position while Purnanand Sarma, Ph.D., takes the helm. Release
> Co-founder and CEO of Oncolytics Biotech Matt Coffey, Ph.D., opted not to return to his role at the company in light of ongoing health concerns, leaving Wayne Pisano, who has been interim CEO during Coffey’s medical leave of absence, to continue his leadership until a new chief is chosen. SEC filing
> Atara vet Gad Soffer is joining the team at neuropsychiatric drugmaker LB Pharmaceuticals as its new chief business officer, while Richard Silva, Ph.D., joins as senior vice president of technical operations. Release
> AI Proteins brought Philip Brandish, Ph.D., on board to lead the target selection and prioritization process as chief development officer. Release
> Moderna said goodbye to Chief Information Officer Brad Miller along with about 50 employees across two digital departments. Story
> Mark Iwicki, CEO of rare eye disease biotech Kala Bio, has resigned effective immediately, with the board appointing President and Chief Operating Officer Todd Bazemore to take his place in the interim. Release
> Bluejay Therapeutics has tapped Mary Cromwell, Ph.D., to be its senior vice president and head of technical operations. Release
> Augustine Therapeutics chairman Gerhard Koenig, Ph.D., has been tapped as the preclinical firm’s new CEO, replacing Sylvain Celanire, who will assume the role of senior vice president of R&D operations. Release
> Drug discovery CRO Sygnature Discovery is looking to grow with the help of Kieron Hall, its new chief commercial officer. Release