James S. Shannon, BSc, MD, MRCP (UK)

President and Chief Executive Officer
Dr. James Shannon joined the Board of Cerimon in October 2008 and was appointed President and CEO of the company in January 2009. Prior to joining the Board, he held the position of Global Head of Pharma Development for Novartis AG based in Basel, Switzerland. After joining Sandoz in 1994 as Head of Drug Regulatory Affairs, Dr. Shannon held a number of significant positions in Novartis including Head of the Integration Office for R&D overseeing the creation of the Novartis R&D groups from those of Ciba and Sandoz and also Head of the Cardiovascular Strategic Team where he oversaw the design and implementation of the clinical trial program for Diovan. Subsequently he was appointed Global Head of Project Management before being appointed Global Head of Clinical Development and Medical Affairs in 1999, a position that he held until 2005 when he was appointed to Head Pharma Development. During these years Novartis was recognized as the leading company in terms of FDA approvals for New Molecular Entities and one of the leading companies with regard to the adoption of novel technology in Development. He first entered the pharmaceutical industry in 1987 joining Sterling Winthrop working initially in Europe and subsequently in the USA, where he held positions of increasing responsibility in the management of Research and Development ultimately serving as Senior Vice-President, Clinical Development. Dr. Shannon is trained in Medicine and Cardiology. He received his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees at Queen's University of Belfast and is a Member of the Royal College of Physicians (UK).

James H. Welch

Chief Financial Officer
James H. Welch became Chief Financial Officer in June 2006. Prior, Mr. Welch was Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary for Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. He joined Rigel in May 1999 as Vice President, Finance and Administration and was named Chief Financial Officer in October 2001. Prior to joining Rigel, Mr. Welch served as an independent consultant at various companies from June 1998 to May 1999. From February 1997 to June 1998, he served as Chief Financial Officer of Biocircuits Corporation, a manufacturer of medical diagnostic equipment, and from June 1992 to February 1997, he served as Corporate Controller of Biocircuits. Previously, Mr. Welch held various positions at NeXT Computer, Inc., most recently as Division Controller. Mr. Welch holds a B.A. in business administration from Whitworth College and an MBA from Washington State University.

Matthew J. Meyer

General Counsel and Vice President of Business Development and Licensing
Matthew Meyer joined Cerimon in January 2008 as its General Counsel and Vice President of Business Development and Licensing.  Mr. Meyer has considerable experience in the areas of commercial law, business development, marketing and licensing with large pharmaceutical, medical device and early stage companies in the US and Europe.  Before joining Cerimon, Mr. Meyer held senior management positions at Draeger Medical Systems, a global medical device company, most recently serving as Vice President and General Counsel.  Prior to Draeger, Mr. Meyer held several positions of increasing responsibility at Novartis Pharma AG in Basel, Switzerland, including serving as Head of Global Marketing Channel Innovations.  While at Novartis, he also coordinated and implemented strategic commercial, marketing, research and development initiatives for the Arthritis, Bone, GI and Urology (ABGU) global marketing franchise.  Previously, Mr. Meyer spent four years as Vice President, Global Business Development and Legal Affairs at Allscripts LLC and five years as a commercial attorney at Pfizer Inc in New York.  Mr. Meyer graduated cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Cornell University.  He earned his Juris Doctor degree from Villanova University School of Law.

Joseph Parks

Senior Vice President Pharmaceutical Product Development
Joseph Parks joined Cerimon in September 2005 as its Vice President, Project Management. Mr. Parks holds a Master of Science degree in Business Management and completed undergraduate studies in Biology and Chemistry. He has over 18 years of experience in the pharmaceutical/health care industry. Mr. Parks began his diverse career as an analytical chemist and moved to leadership roles in Clinical Development, Regulatory Affairs, and Project Management. His experience includes providing project strategy, direction, cross-functional team, and development operations leadership for mid- to late-stage clinical programs and alliance based partnerships; clinical trial management/monitoring & clinical quality assurance auditing; extensive experience with CRO selection, partnering, and management within the industry; participation in NDA filings including applications from Pfizer Inc. & Bayer Pharmaceutical Inc. Prior to joining Cerimon, Mr. Parks was Vice President of Project Management for Clinimetrics, a global CRO.