Chutes & Ladders—Allergan’s finance overseer to retire

Welcome to this week's Chutes and Ladders, our roundup of hirings, firings and retirings throughout the industry. Please send the good word—or the bad—from your shop to Eric Sagonowsky (email) or Angus Liu (email) and we will feature it here at the end of each week.

Allergan CFO to retire as company faces Restasis controversy

Allergan
Tessa Hilado will retire as CFO.

Tessa Hilado came to Allergan in late 2014, bringing with her finance experience accumulated while serving at key positions at PepsiCo, Schering-Plough and General Motors. She oversaw the company’s acquisition of and change of name to Allergan, and subsequently, the $40.5 billion sale of its generics business to Teva. She said she promised Chairman and CEO Brent Saunders that she would stay three years to help transform the company’s finance organization, and now that time has come, she has decided to retire. The timing isn’t ideal for the company, though. Its recent deal to transfer Restasis intellectual property to the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe stirred up controversy. FiercePharma | Read more on FiercePharma

Gilead’s COO to retire in early 2018

Gilead Sciences
Kevin Young will retire as COO.

Gilead COO Kevin Young, whom CEO John Milligan, Ph.D., praised as having "had an impact" on the company, will retire in the first quarter of next year. He joined Gilead in 2004 to lead its commercial operations. Under his watch, the company introduced the first single-tablet regimens for HIV and the first oral direct-acting antiviral agents for chronic hepatitis C. With Sovaldi, Harvoni, Epclusa and Vosevi, the company’s HCV sector has now grown into a multibillion-dollar, commercially successful business. Young retired to become a senior adviser to Gilead in 2014, only to assume the COO role in 2016. After the retirement, he will remain as an adviser to Gilead for some time. Release

Fierce 15 laureate Rubius poaches GSK SVP as CMO

​Rubius Therapeutics
Chris Carpenter, M.D., Ph.D., joined as CMO.

Rubius Therapeutics, a winner of this year’s Fierce 15, has tapped Chris Carpenter, M.D., Ph.D., as its CMO. He was most recently SVP and head of cancer epigenetics at GlaxoSmithKline, where he was responsible for identification and validation of new epigenetic targets and advancing novel treatments through early clinical development. He will now oversee Rubius’ entire clinical development activities. Carpenter joins ex-Novartis pharmaceuticals head David Epstein and former Pfizer exec Torben Straight Nissen, Ph.D., who joined the company earlier. Besides Carpenter, Rubius also announced the appointments of three other execs: Joanne Protano joined as VP of finance from Rubius-backer Flagship Pioneering; Mark Boshar, who founded the legal department at Millennium Pharma, became VP of legal affairs; and Theo Proukou, who spent 16 years at Novartis, was named VP of human resources. FierceBiotech

> Pfizer helped launch SpringWorks Therapeutics by participating in its $103 million series A, and Lara Sullivan, M.D., Pfizer's former VP of strategy and portfolio solutions, worldwide R&D, is the upstart's founder and president. FierceBiotech

> Barbara Weber, M.D., has transitioned from her current role as interim CEO to permanent CEO of Tango Therapeutics, a winner of this year's Fierce 15. She helped establish Tango and Relay Therapeutics, served as interim CMO at Neon Therapeutics, and had held senior leadership positions at Novartis and GSK. Release | Read more at FierceBiotech

> Jeffrey Whitnell was named Aeterna Zentaris' interim CFO, taking over from Geneviéve Lemaire. Release

> Biogen brought on Camille Lee, most recently SVP of diabetes & obesity marketing at Novo Nordisk, as SVP of Alzheimer’s therapeutic area, responsible for the commercial strategy of such assets. Release

> Immuno-oncology company TapImmune named Peter Hoang as president and CEO. He was most recently SVP of business development and strategy at Bellicum Pharmaceuticals, and had previously served as the managing director of innovations at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, heading the institution's new venture formation and development effort. Release

> Bayer announced the appointment of Sharon James, Ph.D., as head of the Global Innovation & Development organization of the Consumer Health Division, succeeding John O'Mullane, Ph.D., who will retire at the end of this year. Release

> Sarepta Therapeutics named Guriqbal "Guriq" Basi, Ph.D., as CSO. Release

> Gene therapy specialist and 2014 Fierce 15 company Spark Therapeutics hired Federico Mingozzi, Ph.D., as CSO. Release | Read more at FierceBiotech

> Beleaguered Insys Therapeutics, whose former executives are under indictment as it faces numerous investigations and lawsuits, named Joe McGrath, who just spent 16 years at Medtronic, as its corporate communications lead. Release

> Donald Notman replaced interim CFO George Migausky as Ocular Therapeutix's CFO. Release

> Tokai's recent CEO Jodie Morrison jumped ship to become the CEO of eGenesis, which focuses on transforming xenotransplantation. Release

> Food and animal safety diagnostics developer Neogen said its COO, Richard E. Calk Jr., has resigned to pursue other opportunities, and that his duties have been assumed by recently appointed CEO John Adent. Release

> Immunotherapy-focused Ziopharm Oncology named David Mauney, M.D., as EVP and CBO. Release

> Clinical research tech firm Teckro brought on Icon's former chief of staff, Dana Poff, as its COO. Release

> Outsourced R&D platform Science Exchange took on Jim Emerich as CFO. Release

> Portuguese CDMO Hovione announced the appointment of Frédéric Kahn as VP of marketing and sales. Release