The Icos Alumni: Where Are They Now?

Luke Timmerman11/18/09Follow @ldtimmerman

[Update: 9:41 pm Pacific, 9/7/10] Icos was once the great hope for Seattle biotech. Founded in 1990 with an investment from Bill Gates, it went on over the next 15 years to create a $1 billion molecule for treating erectile dysfunction, and employed about 700 people nationwide at its peak. For a while, it looked like it would carry the torch as the only big, independent, profitable biotech company with growth potential and staying power in the Seattle area.

That hope was dashed about three years ago, when Icos agreed to be acquired by its partner, Eli Lilly, ultimately for about $2.3 billion. Many readers will remember the controversy over this deal, which I covered with intensity through the fall of 2006 for The Seattle Times. Employees who had worked together for years and built a great camaraderie were deeply upset with CEO Paul Clark, who enriched himself with a $23 million golden parachute through the transaction while kicking most of them to the unemployment line. Shareholders objected to what they saw as a sweetheart deal for management, and ultimately forced Lilly to raise its bid before they handed over their shares.

Even Icos’s founding CEO and legendary leader, George Rathmann, who was not in good health at the time, objected to what had become of the company he created. It had essentially squandered an entire pipeline of drug candidates in the wake of its hit with tadalafil (Cialis), leaving no real opportunity for an encore, and no real strategic alternatives other than getting bought by Lilly.

About 550 people were employed locally at Icos at the time the Lilly acquisition closed in January 2007, and about 350 high-paying local jobs were cut. All that was left was a contract biotech drug manufacturing facility, which Lilly didn’t want, and sold to CMC, a Danish company that continues to operate at the old Icos facility in Bothell today.

But now that three years have gone by, what happened to all that intellectual capital that came to create exciting new biotech drugs for Icos? This is an important question for the future of Seattle biotech, given how companies that look to start or expand to new locations always consider the caliber of the local workforce as one of the main criteria.

From what I’ve been able to gather by talking to some very helpful former Icosians, I’ve discovered that quite a few of these bright people have stayed in the Seattle region. Some left for new opportunities elsewhere, usually after they couldn’t find suitable work in Seattle. Quite a few more than I expected have gone on to co-found or play critical technical roles in some intriguing startups—including Calistoga Pharmaceuticals, CoCrystal Discovery, Mirina, Theraclone Sciences, and Xori.

What follows here is a list of more than 270 names I’ve been able to gather from people who had made contributions to the science, medical, or business aspects of Icos. Special thanks go out to the following Icos alumni who were hugely helpful in allowing me to piece this list together: David Crowe of Mirina; Pat Gray of Accelerator; Ed Kesicki, Allen Casey, and Stephanie Florio of the Infectious Disease Research Institute; and Albert Yu of Calistoga Pharmaceuticals.

Of course, this list isn’t comprehensive. I’ve done my best to verify everybody’s connection to Icos through their LinkedIn profiles or from other sites—but I haven’t been able to confirm every name referred to me. Some people haven’t kept their profiles up to date on LinkedIn or on other sources. So if you can think of former Icos alumni who I’ve overlooked, or if you see any mistakes, please send us an e-mail at editors@xconomy.com, or to me personally at ltimmerman@xconomy.com. Or feel free to post a comment at the bottom of the story. I figure this is a starting point for what could be a valuable networking resource.

—Lee Adams, research scientist, Institute for Systems Biology

—Janet Adolphson, senior research scientist, AMRI

—Laura Afflerbaugh, research associate, Genentech

—Brian Albarran, senior scientist, Trubion Pharmaceuticals

—Lynn Allen, founder, Allen Clinical Research

—Roberta Allen, senior director of medical writing and editing, Sunesis Pharmaceuticals [Added 12/30/09]

—Dan Allison, senior director of therapeutic design, VLST

—Juli Ashburn, senior field force automation administrator, ZymoGenetics

—Eric Austin, senior toxicology consultant, Veritox

—Connie Ave-Teel, manager, lab support, CMC Icos

—Tim Axtelle, vice president of product development, Allozyne

—Susan Aznoff, owner, Petlane Pals

—Lauret Ballsun, owner, LBC Pharmaceutical Professionals

—Cari Barthe, recruiting project manager, NWRPros

—Ted Baughman, senior scientist, chemistry, Saltigo

—Chan Beals, senior director, Merck

—Subru Bhat, vice president of quality assurance, Xenoport [Added Jan. 21, 2010]

—Kelly Bickley, quality control associate scientist, CMC Icos

—Julie Birashk, process development associate, CMC Icos

—Bodil Bjorner, development associate, CMC Icos

—Kyla Bjornson, senior research associate, Gilead Sciences

—Kim Black-Washington, director of marketing and strategic development, Xcelience

—Leonard Blum, senior vice president and chief commercial officer, Theravance

—Mike Bradley, staff scientist, Array Biopharma

—Heather Brammer, quality assurance manager, ZymoGenetics

—Mike Brandenstein, scientist, Amgen

—Jacqueline Brassard, scientific director, pathology, Allergan

—Heather (Brand) Brett, scientist, Amgen

—Jeff Bridewell, thought leader liaison, Genentech

—Doug Burns, principal, DBC Consulting

—Katie Carrigan, director of human resources, ZymoGenetics

—Jason Carstens, director of process development, CMC Icos

—Shannon Carstens, principal product quality leader, Amgen

—Allen Casey, group leader, high throughput screening/robotics, Infectious Disease Research Institute

—Sommer Castro, research technician, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center

—Tina Catterall, managing partner, Global Interactions

—Shannon Cavallari, training coordinator, PATH

—Shing Chang, R&D director, Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative

—David Chantry, senior scientist, Genentech

—Jay Charleston, owner and principal, STNW Consulting, owner of Stereotome NW

—Hao Chen, principal scientist, Calistoga Pharmaceuticals

—Janice Chittenden, director of software quality, NeuroVista

—Michael Cicirelli, scientist, Theraclone Sciences

—Paul Clark, operating partner, Genstar Capital, member of board of directors at Amylin Pharmaceuticals

—Courtney Clark, research associate II, Seattle Genetics

—Darcey Clark, senior scientist, Amgen [Updated: 12:20 pm Pacific, 3/29/10]

—Tony Colasin, consultant, APC Corporate Development & Strategy Consulting

—Anita Colvin, technical scientist, CMC Icos

—Tom Cox, senior associate scientist, Novo Nordisk

—David Crowe, scientist, Mirina

—Dee Czaykowski, life sciences consultant [Added 12/30/09]

—Jeff Dantzler, senior research associate, Novo Nordisk

—Bela Denes, senior director of clinical research and development, Spectrum Pharmaceuticals

—Peter de Vries, associate director of translational sciences, Ikaria

—Mike Deeley, consultant, Somerset Consulting

—Ardelle Dennis, executive assistant, CMC Icos

—Mike Dennis, pharmaceuticals professional

—Frank Diaz, assistant professor, University of North Alabama

—Ken Dick, senior field technical specialist, LI-COR Biosciences

—Greg Dietsch, vice president of research, VentiRx Pharmaceuticals

—Tressa Dodd, senior director of regulatory affairs, VentiRx Pharmaceuticals

—Jason Douangpanya, senior associate scientist, Amgen

—Heather Douangpanya, senior associate scientist, Amgen

—Tom Dudler, senior group leader, Omeros

—Christian Eckhoff, senior scientist at SNBL USA

—Ana Edwards, senior quality control analyst, Seattle Genetics

—Kevin Egan, vice president of business development, CMC Icos

—Fred Elliott, chemist, Bio-Rad Laboratories

—Leslie Elliott, clinical research consultant

—Nancy Enselman, office manager, VentiRx Pharmaceuticals

—Angela Epp, research technologist III, Puget Sound Blood Center

—James Esselstyn, production supervisor, Bio-Rad Laboratories

—Jerry Evarts, principal scientist, chemistry, Calistoga Pharmaceuticals

—Russell Eyre, director of safety assessment, SNBL USA

—Gay Fanning, marketing assistant

—Brian Farnes, safety coordinator, Nintendo

—Rebekah Farnsworth, senior manager of technology transfer, Alder Biopharmaceuticals

—Francine Farouz, senior director of medicinal chemistry, Fate Therapeutics

—Valerie Fauvelle, associate manager of regulatory affairs, Gilead Sciences

—Dave Federighi, senior analytical chemist, WIL Research Laboratories

—Ken Ferguson, president and CEO, Imvaxyn

—Gail Ferrari, executive assistant, business development, PopCap Games

—Lacy Fitzpatrick, senior investor relations analyst, Nordstrom

—Tim Fitzpatrick, site manager, Saltigo Redmond

—Vince Florio, director of science, Omeros

—Stephanie Florio, senior scientist, Infectious Disease Research Institute

—Kerry Fowler, principal, KFW Consulting

—Paul Fredlund, biotechnology consultant

—Steven Frey, Theraclone Sciences

—Mark Fromhold, vice president of manufacturing and process development, Koronis Pharmaceuticals

—Lyn Frumkin, biotechnology consultant

—Michael Gallatin, president, Calistoga Pharmaceuticals

—Christopher Gann, vice president, Starbucks

—Bob Garcia Jr., senior research associate scientist, Genentech

—Leon Garcia-Martinez, associate director, Alder Biopharmaceuticals

—Jeff Gardin, IT director, CMC Icos

—Dean Gittleman, senior director of biometrics, Vertex Pharmaceuticals [Added 12/30/09]

—Phyllis Goldman, senior program manager, Merck

—David Goodkin, independent biotechnology professional

—Kathy Goodman, executive assistant

—Rebecca Gottschalk, senior research associate, Trubion Pharmaceuticals

—Patrick Gray, chief scientific director, Accelerator

—Melanie Gray, medical student

—Jacinthe Guindon, director of clinical operations, Viventia Biotech

—Stephen Hadley, vice president of quality, CMC Icos

—Jim Halbrook, senior research scientist, Albany Molecular Research

—Kristi Hamilton, research associate III, Institute for Systems Biology

—Christine Hansen, senior research associate, Seattle Genetics

—Lori Hansen, director of project management, Seattle Genetics

—Kevin Harbol, senior group leader, Omeros

—Pat Hardwick, information technology support manager, College Success Foundation

—Justin Hare, in vivo toxicology study coordinator, Amgen

—Edith Harris, scientist, Mirina

—Nataly Hawthorn, biotechnology professional

—Joel Hayflick, former senior oncology early product development team leader, Genentech

—Allen Heck, director of operations, Northshore Sheet Metal

—Lee Hendrickson, owner, Side Street Photographics

—Christopher Henney, chairman of the board, Oncothyreon, director, AVI Biopharma

—Kelly Hensley, senior associate scientist, Amgen

—Dan Herendeen, research scientist, Tumor Vaccine Group, University of Washington

—Carmen Hertel, research associate, Unigen

—Jeff Hesselberg, vice president of regulatory affairs, GTx

—John Hill, director of medical sciences, Amgen

—Mark Hill, senior scientist in autoimmunity, ZymoGenetics

—Stephen Hill, executive director of manufacturing, Amgen

—Jim Hnilo, project manager, Ricerca Biosciences [Added: 10:10 am, 6/11/10]

—Nicole Hoagland, clinical study manager, Seattle Children’s Hospital

—Merl Hoekstra, vice president of corporate and business development, ELITech Group

—Patricia Hoffman, administrative director for research, Puget Sound Blood Center

—Ryan Holcomb, project director, Myriad Pharmaceuticals

—Mark Honda, director of human resources, CMC Icos

—Shawn Hooper, sales manager, Charles River Laboratories

—Monique Howard, senior associate scientist, Amgen

—Yvonne Howard, purchasing agent, Boeing

—Scott Hussell, senior research associate, Novo Nordisk

—Sally Thompson Iritani, associate director, ZymoGenetics

—Christopher Irons, contract biotech drug researcher

—Irina Jacobson, associate director of research chemistry, AVI Biopharma

—Laury Jenkins, executive assistant, CMC Icos

—Bohan Stan Jin, scientist II, Takeda San Diego

—Bryan Jones, biotech and pharmaceutical consultant

—Padmaja Juwadi, director of quality assurance, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories [Added at 5:30 Pacific, 3/10/10]

—Suzanne Kanaly, scientific director, pathology, Allergan

—Ramesh Kasar, scientist

—Adam Kashishian, staff scientist at Calistoga Pharmaceuticals

—Heather Kean, administrative assistant, Seattle Genetics

—Kathy Keegan, principal scientist, Amgen

—Gary Keizur, director of quality assurance/quality control, MediQuest Therapeutics

—Michael Kellogg, associate director of facilities and operations, Trubion Pharmaceuticals

—Ed Kesicki, director of small molecule drug discovery, Infectious Disease Research Institute

—Pat Kilgannon, former director of project management, ZymoGenetics

—Musong Kim, research scientist, Gilead Sciences

—Jonathan Klepinger, senior research associate, Trubion Pharmaceuticals

—Abby Kliphardt, production chemist, Bio-Rad Laboratories

—Joshua Klocke, associate scientist IV, MDS Pharma Services

—Byron Kneller, senior staff scientist, CMC Icos

—Gabrielle Kolakowski, associate scientist, Array Biopharma

—Sandy Kopponol, city council member, city of Lake Forest Park

—Yvonne Lai, professor of biology, Indiana University

—Keith Laycock, network analyst, City of Redmond

—Sam Lee, president, CoCrystal Discovery

—Dina Leviten, scientist, Ikaria

—Michael Libby, assistant director of quality control, Irix Pharmaceuticals

—Marykay Ligocki, research scientist

—Mong-Wu Lin, quality control associate, Dharma Therapeutics

—Brian Lipsky, senior associate research scientist, Amgen

—Mila Lobanova, senior director of finance, ZymoGenetics

—Christine Loh, associate director, Sirtris Pharmaceuticals

—Kate Loughney, medical and scientific writing

—Andrew Lover, graduate student researcher, National University of Singapore

—Mark Lupher, senior vice president of drug discovery, Promedior

—Mack Mabry, senior director, Trubion Pharmaceuticals

—Linda MacKeen, director of medical writing, Seattle Genetics

—Patricia Magnafichi, procurement manager, Genentech

—Benjamin Maier, quality assurance senior specialist, CMC Icos

—Linda Mangone, director of organization development and learning, Regence Blue Cross/BlueShield

—Timothy Martins, co-director Quellos High Throughput Screening Core, Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington

—Mari Maurer, director of clinical operations, BioMarin Pharmaceutical [Added 12/30/09]

—Kim Nordstrom McCaw, biotechnology professional

—David McElligott, vice president of research and development, Mirina

—William McFee, scientist, Seattle Genetics

—David Meyer, senior research associate, Seattle Genetics

—Greg Miller, scientist, Bayer Healthcare

—Leslie Milligan, senior clinical data manager, i3StatProbe

—Rosemary Monaghan, biotechnology professional

—Susan Moon, freelance medical writer

—Robin Moore, vice president of worldwide procurement, Getty Images [Added 12/30/09]

—Amy Moro, quality assurance analyst, Quidel

—Michael Moro, senior project manager of clinical supplies, Bilcare GCS

—Steve Murdock, partner, life sciences practice leader, Allen Austin Executive Search

—Aileen Murphy, director of biometrics, Seattle Genetics [Added 12/30/09]

—Colleen Murphy, lab supply coordinator, MDRNA

—Sean O’Dea, vice president of intellectual property, 3-V Biosciences

—Joshua Odingo, director of chemistry, Infectious Disease Research Institute

—Amy Oliver, chemicals professional

—Harch Ooi, senior scientist, process chemistry, Seattle Genetics

—Mark Orme, group leader of chemistry, Acucela

—Karen Osofsky Michelson, senior manager of talent acquisition, Amazon.com

—Karen Parker, clinical trial manager, Genentech

—Leland Paul, vice president of process development, CMC Icos

—Noah Pefaur, staff scientist, Novo Nordisk

—Sissy Peterman, clinical research manager, Calistoga Pharmaceuticals

—Scott Peterson, vice president of research and development, Oncothyreon

—Tony Phan, manufacturing manager, Infectious Disease Research Institute

—Louise Pobanz, finance director, CMC Icos

—Tamara Potter, clinical research associate, Medicis Technologies

—John Pribble, vice president of medical affairs, ZymoGenetics

—Jeffrey Price, engineering technician, CMC Icos

—Mark Prudhon, clinical supply manager, Seattle Genetics

—Kamal Puri, principal scientist, head of biology, Calistoga Pharmaceuticals

—Carol Raport, senior scientist, VLST

—George Rathmann, retired

—Padma Ravikumar, senior research associate, Trubion Pharmaceuticals

—Mark Reed, director of medicinal chemistry, Treventis

—Rob Rees, senior systems engineer, CMC Icos

—Mark Rice, staff scientist, CMC Icos

—Maha Rizk, scientist

—Kathy Rogers, associate director, statistical programming, ZymoGenetics

—Diane Rosman, biotechnology professional

—Guy Rosman, technical scientist with Rylem, owner of Ramps To You

—Fuqiang Ruan, principal scientist, discovery chemistry, Ikaria

—Alex Rudolph, associate scientist, Gilead Sciences

—Jennifer Running Deer, senior associate scientist, Novo Nordisk

—Anthony Russell, director of medical affairs, ZymoGenetics

—Chanchal Sadhu, senior principal investor, Covance Laboratories

—Stephen Schmidt, biochemical pharmacology, Genentech

—Lisa Schultze, head of quality, Saltigo Redmond

—James Schwartz, director of business operations and sales effectiveness, ZymoGenetics

—Randy Schweikart, senior manager, Amgen

—Vicki Schweickart, principal at Datakine Consulting

—Roxanne Scott, drug safety consultant [Added 12/30/09]

—Nilesh Shah, principal scientist, Seattle Genetics

—Regan Shea, senior director of chemical development, Gilead Sciences

—Kim Shigenaka, senior associate scientist, Amgen

—Randall Sittner, logistics manager at Seattle Genetics, owner Kim’s Cafe

—Elaine Skeffington, executive assistant, Institute for Systems Biology

—Karen Solvason, clinical data management, Seattle Genetics

—Jari Sowell, senior data manager, Genentech [Updated, 12/30/09, formerly with Amgen]

—Diane St. John, director of human resources, Seattle Genetics

—Tom St. John, former executive vice president, Fate Therapeutics

—Frank Stappenbeck, scientist, Fate Therapeutics

—Don Staunton, president and chief scientific officer, CisThera

—Michael Stein, member of the board of directors, Nautilus

—Bart Steiner, staff scientist, Calistoga Pharmaceuticals

—Michael Stewart, president, Northwest Pharma Consulting

—Johnny Stine, founder and president, North Coast Biologics

—Cliff Stocks, chief business officer, Calistoga Pharmaceuticals

—Ellen Stone, benefits manager, Symetra Financial

—Liming Sui, pharmaceuticals professional

—Tom Swallow, consultant

—Jennifer Swank, analytical chemistry consultant, Swank Consulting

—Janelle Taylor, senior research associate II, VLST

—Elena Te, senior clinical design consultant, Phase Forward

—Sally Teeters, director of legal and business operations management, Calistoga Pharmaceuticals

—Bobbie Thomasson, senior research associate, Amgen

—Eugene Thorsett, pharmaceutical consultant

—James Tierney, accounting manager, Ste. Michelle Wine Estates

—Karen Tindall, director of clinical data management, Innovative Analytics [Added 12/30/09]

—Bill Tino, staff scientist, LigoCyte Pharmaceuticals

—Larry Tjoelker, senior director of research, Xori

—Carlos Toledano, vivarium manager, Benaroya Research Institute

—Nate Toy, manufacturing associate III, Bio-Rad Laboratories

—Sam Tran, senior associate scientist, Amgen

—Carol Tranfaglia, manager of clinical data management, Cell Therapeutics [Added: 9:41 pm, 9/7/10]

—Jennifer Treiberg, associate scientist II, Gilead Sciences

—Stephanie Tuck, preclinical scientist, Uptake Medical

—Brad Turcott, senior human resources manager, Seattle Genetics, director of human resources at Infospace

—Terry Turner, director of business development, PSI

—Stephanie Turner, biotechnology consultant

—Nancy Upton, executive assistant to the president and CFO, Genie Industries

—Linda Valentine, quality control analyst, ZymoGenetics

—Mike Van Brunt, scientist, Allozyne

—Mike Vandiver, director of pilot plant operations, Amgen

—Marie Rose van Schravendijk, associate director of analytical and formulation development, CMC Icos

—Rosemay Vazeux, scientist

—Joachim Veith, senior drug safety scientist, Genentech/Roche [Added 12/30/09]

—Satyanarayana Vunnam, scientist [Added 3/3/10]

—Andy Walker, associate director manufacturing technical operations, CMC Icos

—Susan Wang, strategic director for Asia, MDS Pharma Services

—Margie Watson, ambassador of first impressions, CMC Icos

—Steve Waugh, director of downstream process development, CMC Icos

—Dave Weber, security engineer, Network Computing Architects

—Joachim Weickmann, biotechnology professional

—Joe Weil, senior scientist, Trubion Pharmaceuticals

—Steven Whitaker, vice president of clinical development and chief medical officer, Allon Therapeutics

—Claire White, administrative specialist, ZymoGenetics

—Gary Wilcox, chairman and CEO, CoCrystal Discovery

—Pamela Wilkendorf, senior CMC project manager, CMC Icos

—Wendy Wisdom, senior associate scientist, Amgen

—Sharon Wolda, senior program manager, Intellectual Ventures

—Jeff Wood, associate director of global product development, PPD

—Michele (Koethe) Yetman, vice president of human resources, technology, Amazon.com

—Albert Yu, vice president, clinical affairs, chief medical officer, Calistoga Pharmaceuticals

—Patricia Zajac, executive coordinator, Gilead Sciences

—Kristin Ziegler, process development manager, CMC Icos

Luke Timmerman is the National Biotech Editor of Xconomy. E-mail him at ltimmerman@xconomy.com Follow @ldtimmerman