Girard will oversee the company’s strategic vision
SEATTLE (July 2, 2015) — Acucela Inc. (TOKYO: 4589) (“Acucela” or the “Company”), a clinical-stage biotechnology company that specializes in discovering and developing novel drug candidates to potentially treat and slow the progression of sight-threatening ophthalmic diseases, announced today that it has hired Roger Girard as Chief Strategy Officer.
Having built 14 successful companies over the past 40 years in multiple industries, Girard brings deep experience in business management and will take on the newly created position at Acucela, helping to guide the Company’s growth and strategic initiatives. Girard currently serves as an executive consultant for Acucela.
The Acucela Board of Directors (the “Board”) appointed Girard as Chief Strategy Officer, effective Sept. 1, 2015, at its July 2 meeting in Tokyo, Japan.
“Roger was already serving an important role in helping to shape Acucela’s business strategy,” said Ryo Kubota, MD, PhD, Chairman, President and CEO of Acucela Inc. “So we are thrilled to bring Roger on as a full-time member of the Company’s executive management team. His experience in team building, resource management and creating and executing a strategic vision will prove invaluable to the Company.”
Girard has broad business management experience across multiple industries, including medical devices, renewable energy, manufacturing, software platforms and distribution. He most recently served as Chief Financial Officer and Co-Founder of CareCap, a Bellevue, Wash.-based company that provides cloud-based merchant processing and payment management systems for doctor-financed care facilities; and as CEO of Neuro-ID, which provides cloud-based detection of suspicious threats and behaviors.
Girard also previously served as Chairman and CEO of IsoRay Medical (NYSE MKT: ISR), a global company that developed the process and manufactured a new Radionuclide for the treatment of malignant tumors. Girard has raised more than $325 million in investment equity over his career.
“My whole career has been about building innovative companies, and Acucela is not only innovative but it has the potential to help the lives of people around the world with eye diseases,” Girard said. “I’m honored to be part of the Acucela team and to help guide the Company’s strategy.”
About Acucela Inc.
Acucela Inc. (www.acucela.com or www.acucela.jp) is a clinical-stage biotechnology company that specializes in discovering and developing novel drug candidates to potentially treat and slow the progression of sight-threatening ophthalmic diseases, which could impact millions of individuals worldwide. Acucela currently has the following co-development agreements with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.: emixustat hydrochloride, its lead investigational drug candidate for geographic atrophy associated with dry age-related macular degeneration based on Acucela’s proprietary visual cycle modulation technology; and OPA-6566, an investigational compound originating from Otsuka Pharmaceutical for the treatment of ocular hypertension and glaucoma.
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