Leadership:
Board Of Directors
W. Dana LaForge – ChairmanPartner W. Dana LaForge is a Partner at Brera Capital Partners with overall responsibility for all aspects of this $680 million private equity fund. Prior to joining Brera in 2006, Mr. LaForge ran Colonnade Financial Group, Inc., a private equity services firm he founded in June 1992 with the support of Deutsche Bank. At Colonnade he managed a portfolio of private equity investments owned by Deutsche Bank. Earlier in his career, Mr. LaForge was a Managing Director at Deutsche Bank Alex Brown where he headed the Financial Institutions Group in Investment Banking. While there, he primarily advised clients on merger and acquisition transactions after several years of trading mortgage backed securities. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors of the MMRF, Mr. LaForge serves on the Board of Directors of GAB Robins, NA, Residential Loss Control Holdings, Inc. and Western Industries. Mr. LaForge earned a BS from Washington and Lee University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He lives in New York City with his wife, Kathleen McCabe and their two young daughters. |
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Kenneth Anderson, MDChief, Division of Hematologic Neoplasia Dr. Anderson graduated from Johns Hopkins Medical School. He trained in internal medicine at Johns Hopkins Hospital and completed hematology, medical oncology, and tumor immunology training at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Dr. Anderson is the Kraft Family Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and serves as Chief of the Division of Hematologic Neoplasia, Director of the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center, and Vice Chair of the Joint Program in Transfusion Medicine at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He received the Waldenstrom's Award in 2003 for his translational research directed to the development of novel therapeutics targeting the myeloma cell in its microenvironment. He serves as Chair of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network's Multiple Myeloma Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee, on the Board of Directors and as Chairman of the Scientific Advisors of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, and is a Doris Duke Distinguished Clinical Research Scientist. |
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Karen E. AndrewsSVP, Legal and Business Affairs Karen E. Andrews is currently SVP, Legal and Business Affairs of Hachette Book Group USA in New York. Previously Karen was the General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of BBDO Worldwide, Inc. where she was responsible for the management of the legal activities of over 150 individual operating units throughout the world. Prior to joining BBDO Worldwide, Ms. Andrews was Associate General Counsel and Director of Television Business Affairs at Time Inc. Ms. Andrews began her career in law as a Litigation Associate at the New York law firm of Weil, Gotshal & Manges where she specialized in Entertainment Litigation. Ms. Andrews graduated cum laude from the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Science degree in biology and earned her law degree, cum laude, from Temple School of Law. Ms. Andrews is a member of the American Bar Association and the New York State Bar Association. In 1998, Ms. Andrews co-founded the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation with Kathy Giusti.
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Robert J. Beall, PhDPresident and Chief Executive Officer Robert J. Beall is the President and CEO of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Prior to joining the Foundation, Dr. Beall was Chief of the Endocrinology, Metabolic Diseases, and Resources Programs Branch of the Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolic Diseases Program at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). During his tenure at the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Dr. Beall has been the architect of the Foundation's aggressive and entrepreneurial drug discovery program. Dr. Beall received his Bachelor of Science from Albright College and his doctorate degree in biochemistry from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Dr. Beall has authored numerous articles that have been published in both scientific journals and textbooks.
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Frank Douglas, PhD, MDSenior Fellow, Kauffman Foundation Dr. Douglas advises the Kauffman Foundation as a Senior Fellow. He is also Partner of Pure Tech Ventures and Founder and first Executive Director of the MIT Center for Biomedical Innovation. At MIT, he was a professor at the Sloan School of Management and also held appointments in the departments of biology, biological engineering, and the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology. Formerly, Dr. Douglas was Executive Vice President, Chief Scientific Officer, and a Member of the Board of Management at Aventis. He serves on the board of directors of a number of pharmaceutical companies. Dr. Douglas is the recipient of the 2007 Black History Makers Award and has been honored twice as the Global Pharmaceutical R&D Director of the Year. He has also received the Medal of Honor and an Honorary Professorship from the Johann Wolfgang von Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany. Frank received his PhD in physical chemistry and MD from Cornell University. He did his internship and residency in internal medicine at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institution and a fellowship in neuroendocrinology at the National Institutes of Health. |
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Kathy GiustiFounder and Chief Executive Officer Kathy Giusti is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) and the Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC). In 1998, following her diagnosis with multiple myeloma, Ms. Giusti founded the MMRF to fund innovative myeloma research and drug discovery. Having raised more than $120 million to date, the MMRF is the world's number one funder of myeloma research. As an extension of the MMRF's mission, Ms. Giusti founded the MMRC in 2004 to enable leading research institutions to work with industry to speed the discovery and development of effective new treatments. Comprising 15 academic institutions across North America, the MMRC is widely recognized for breaking down barriers in tissue banking, data management, genomics, and clinical trials, and is considered an optimal research model to accelerate the development of new therapies. Ms. Giusti received her MBA in general management from Harvard Business School and graduated from the University of Vermont magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences. She began her career in 1980 with Merck & Co., and later joined the Gillette Company. In 1993, she joined G.D. Searle & Co., where she last served as Executive Director of Searle's worldwide arthritis franchise. Ms. Giusti has received several awards for her efforts to advance medical research and accelerate drug development, including the Centennial Medal for Distinguished Public Service from the American Association for Cancer Research, the Partners in Progress Award from the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the Healthcare Businesswomen's Association's Woman of the Year Award, and Harvard Business School Entrepreneurial Award. Her efforts have also been recognized by several notable media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The New Yorker, Forbes, The Economist, Time, CNBC, CBS Evening News, and NBC Nightly News. Ms. Giusti has served on numerous boards, including the Institute of Medicine's National Cancer Policy Board and the Cancer Leadership Council. Today, she continues to serve on the National Cancer Advisory Board, an appointment she received in 2003 from President Bush, and is a member of the Board of Directors for IMS Health. She lives in Connecticut with her husband, Paul, and her children, Nicole, who is 14, and David, who is 12. |
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Stephen GrandPresident and Partner Mr. Grand has been President and Partner of Grand-Sakwa Properties, one of southeastern Michigan's major developers of residential and retail properties, since 1990. From 1980 to 2000, he was President and Owner of Deco-Grand, Inc., a manufacturer of precision components and assemblies for diesel engines and automotive industries. Mr. Grand has served on the boards of the Karmanos Cancer Institute, Focus Hope, and the American Technion Society, as well as on the Endowment Committee of the Jewish Federation of San Francisco. He is a member of the DeTocqueville Society of the United Way of Michigan and a member of the Northern California Presidents Organization. Mr. Grand received his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees from the University of Michigan School of Engineering. |
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Eugene P. GrisantiRetired Chairman, President and CEO Eugene P. Grisanti is the former Chairman, President and CEO of International Flavors & Fragrances, the world's largest flavor and fragrance company, a position he held for fifteen years, after serving as Senior Vice-President, General Counsel and other executive positions. He was a corporate attorney with the firm Fulton, Walter and Halley in New York City prior to joining IFF. Mr. Grisanti was elected to The Rockefeller University Board of Trustees in 1991, served as Chairman of The Rockefeller University Hospital Committee, and was elected Trustee Emeritus in 2000. Mr. Grisanti is Managing Director of The Metropolitan Opera, Vice-Chairman of The New York Botanical Garden, Chairman Emeritus of The New York City Ballet, and Director Emeritus of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. He is also a member of the Boards of the Ambrose Monell Foundation and the G. Unger Vetlesen Foundation. Eugene Grisanti received an A.B. from Holy Cross College, an LL.B. cum laude from Boston University, and an LL.M. from Harvard Law School.
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Allan HellerOperating Partner Mr. Heller is an Operating Partner with Water Street Healthcare Partners. Prior to joining Water Street Healthcare Partners, Mr. Heller was CEO of American Pharmaceutical Partners, an Investment Advisor on life science transactions to One Equity Partners, a private equity arm of JP Morgan Chase, and served as Senior Vice President and President of Global Renal Operations at Baxter Healthcare Corporation. Prior to these positions, Mr. Heller had an illustrious 23-year career at G.D. Searle, most recently as Executive Vice President and President of Searle Operations, and as a member of the Pharmacia Management Committee. Mr. Heller holds a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from the University of Chicago and earned an MBA in finance from DePaul University. |
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Anthony K. (Tony) KesmanSenior Partner Anthony Kesman is an Operating partner at Linden with more than thirty years experience in healthcare distribution, medical device and provider operations. Mr. Kesman began his career with American Hospital Supply Corporation’s distribution division, holding positions of increasing responsibility at successor companies Baxter International, Allegiance Healthcare and Cardinal Health. Prior to joining Linden, he served as an independent consultant and advisor to both public and privately held medical device, healthcare service and private equity firms. Mr. Kesman currently serves on the boards of directors of BarrierSafe Solutions International, Drayer Physical Therapy Institute, Focused Health Solutions, and the Scrip Companies. Previously, he served as a founding director of Source Medical Corporation, Canada’s largest medical supply distributor, as well as two terms as a director of the Health Industry Distributors Association (HIDA) Educational Foundation. He is also a member of the board of Children’s Memorial Medical Center, Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital, Junior Achievement of Chicago, the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation and a member of the Economic Club of Chicago. Mr. Kesman holds an MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University and a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Iowa. |
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Lori Tauber MarcusVP, Marketplace Activation Lori Tauber Marcus is a 21-year PepsiCo employee who is currently serving in the role of Vice President, Marketplace Activation for PepsiCo North America Beverages. She leads a team which brings all the marketing ideas to life on packaging, in the retail environment, and in the field with Bottling partners. Her team manages the national beverage marketing calendar, the innovation process and is the key linkage between the brand groups and the sales organization/Pepsi Bottling system. Ms. Marcus began her career at Pepsi as a Marketing Associate and held various roles in brand management, field marketing, and retail customer marketing. Ms. Marcus went on to become Director of the Foodservice Division's Restaurant Customer Marketing and Vice President, Marketing, of Pepsi's Foodservice Division before being appointed to her current position. In 2004, Ms. Tauber Marcus was elected to the YWCA's Academy of Women Leaders for her contributions to the MMRF. Ms. Tauber Marcus earned her bachelor's degree from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. |
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Gerald McDougallPartner Mr. McDougall is Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers Health Sciences Practice, where he provides services to academic medical centers, bioscience companies, pharmaceutical companies, research universities, colleges, health systems, and other research organizations. His practice provides a broad range of research business and compliance services, including strategic and business planning, financial analysis, research compliance, clinical research operations improvement, and information systems implementation services. In addition, his practice provides support services to the entire research continuum, from grant-funded basic science research, to translational research and clinical trials, including a dedicated group focusing on Clinical Research Consulting services. |
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William S. McKiernanChair and CEO William McKiernan is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of CyberSource Corporation. Prior to founding CyberSource, Mr. McKiernan was President and Chief Operating Officer of McAfee Associates, now Network Associates; Mr. McKiernan held this position during the company's initial public offering. Before joining McAfee, Mr. McKiernan was Vice President of Princeton Venture Research, Inc. and held management positions at ROLM/IBM. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors of the MMRF, Mr. McKiernan is the West Coast Chairman of the Boston College Technology Council. Mr. McKiernan holds a Bachelor of Science from Boston College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. |
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Chris A. McWiltonPresident, U.S. Markets Chris A. McWilton is president of U. S. Markets for MasterCard Worldwide. In this capacity, Mr. McWilton oversees all of the company's U. S. activities including sales, business development, business strategy, and relationship management for card issuers, merchants and merchant acquirers. Prior to being appointed president of U. S. Markets in 2009, he served as president of Global Accounts, where he managed relationships on a global basis for the company's largest customers. He is a member of the company's Executive Committee. Mr. McWilton joined MasterCard in 2003 as corporate controller and was appointed chief financial officer in October of the same year. As CFO, he was responsible for all financial functions, including financial reporting, investor relations, planning, treasury, tax, and new markets and investments. Mr. McWilton led the effort to make MasterCard SOX 404 compliant and helped complete the company’s successful initial public offering (IPO) in May 2006. MasterCard’s IPO was the largest domestic IPO of 2006 and the 12th largest domestic IPO in U.S. history at the time. Prior to joining MasterCard, Mr. McWilton had a 22-year career with KPMG, where he specialized in financial and SEC reporting and was an SEC Reviewing Partner. Mr. McWilton earned a bachelor's degree in business administration in accounting, summa cum laude, from St. Bonaventure University and is a certified public accountant. |
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Mike MortimerExecutive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer Mike Mortimer is Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of Quintiles Transnational Corp., which provides innovative development and commercialization solutions to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, helping to bring new medicines to market and increase sales faster. He oversees the company's Human Resources, Corporate Communication, Legal and Risk Management, Real Estate and Facilities, and Global Security. He is responsible for managing a worldwide staff of more than 400 and an annual budget of over $350 million. Prior to joining Quintiles, Mr. Mortimer spent 10 years at Charles Schwab Corp. in a variety of executive positions, most recently as Senior Vice President of Human Resources for the retail and international divisions. He began his career in human resources at Sprint Corporation in 1986 and holds a bachelor's degree in behavioral sciences from Ohio State University. |
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Charles B. OrtnerSenior Partner Charles B. Ortner is a Partner at the New York-based Proskauer Rose LLP law firm, where he represents many of the world's leading recording artists, songwriters, record producers, music publishers and record companies in litigation, as well as a counselor and strategic advisor. Mr. Ortner also serves as National Legal Counsel to the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. (the Grammy Award organization). Previously, Mr. Ortner served as an Aide to Mayor John V. Lindsay of New York City, and as an Assistant to United States Attorney Whitney North Seymour, Jr. in the Southern District of New York. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors of the MMRF, Mr. Ortner was a member of the Board of Trustees of the T.J. Martell Foundation for Leukemia, Cancer and AIDS Research, and currently serves as the President of the Kanye West Foundation, an organization dedicated to using music education to combat the drop out problem faced by inner city schools. Along with his two children, Mr. Ortner established the Jane Ortner Multiple Myeloma Research Fellowship at New York Weill Cornell Medical Center. Mr. Ortner received his bachelor's degree from Washington University in St. Louis and received his law degree from Brooklyn Law School. |
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Edward J. PhillipsChairman and Chief Executive Officer Phillips Beverage Company Edward J. Phillips is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Phillips Beverage Company and Founder and Chairman of Millennium Import LLC. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors of the MMRF, Mr. Phillips serves as a trustee and a member of the Executive Committee of The Jay and Rose Phillips Family Foundation, a member of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of The Jay Phillips Center for Jewish-Christian Learning at St. John's University / University of St. Thomas, a member of the Advisory Committee of the Givens Collection of African American Literature at the University of Minnesota. Mr. Phillips also served for seven years as an Executive Mentor for the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management. Mr. Phillips graduated from Stanford University and earned his a Master's in clinical psychology and his law degree from University of Minnesota. Mr. Phillips is also a graduate of the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program. |
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Donna A. ZaccaroPresident Donna Zaccaro is President of WhatGoesAround.org (WGA) an internet nonprofit with a mission of creating a nation of everyday philanthropists. In joining WGA, Ms. Zaccaro took a leave from the television and film production company she founded and ran, called DAZzling Media Inc. Prior to launching that company in 2001, Ms. Zaccaro was a producer for the Today Show at NBC News for eight years. Ms. Zaccaro has also had careers in running political campaigns for Geraldine Ferraro; in public affairs at The Bedford Kent Group, a marketing and communications firm she co-founded; and in investment banking at Solomon Brothers, Inc. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors of the MMRF, Ms. Zaccaro serves on the Board of Directors of the Arts Connection, a nonprofit that provides arts education to NYC Public Schools, and as a trustee on the Board of The Grace Church School, an independent school in New York City. Ms. Zaccaro holds a Bachelor of Art degree in comparative literature from Brown University and an MBA in General Business Administration from Harvard Business School. |
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Meryl ZausnerChief Financial Officer Meryl Zausner is the Chief Financial Officer of Novartis Corporation and a member of the company's Executive Committee. Ms. Zausner has worked in the Consumer Products and Pharmaceutical industries for 27 years. Previously, she was Vice President and CFO of Novartis Oncology. In addition to her responsibilities as CFO, Ms. Zausner chaired the Novartis Pharmaceuticals 2006 & 2007 Global Diversity Council, of which she was a founding member. She was also a founding member of the U.S. EWIN (Empowering Women to Impact Novartis) Initiative. In 2007, she was named Healthcare Businesswomen Association's Woman of the Year. Before joining Novartis, Ms. Zausner held a variety of positions with the Colgate Palmolive Company and spent three years working in Public Accounting. She has degrees in Economics and Accounting from the University at Albany as well as her CPA in New York. |
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