Rolf Stahel Joins Board of Ergomed as Non-Executive Chairman

GUILDFORD, England, May 7, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

Ergomed, a UK-based drug development services company, today announces the appointment of Rolf Stahel to its Board as Non-Executive Chairman.

Rolf Stahel brings over 30 years' experience in the global pharmaceutical industry. He led Shire Pharmaceuticals Group plc as Chief Executive Officer from March 1994 to 2003 and during his tenure implemented six mergers and acquisitions transforming the private $30 million company into a FTSE 100 company.  

Miroslav Reljanovic, Chief Executive Officer of Ergomed commented:  "We are delighted that Rolf has joined Ergomed as Chairman. He brings unrivalled experience of the pharmaceutical industry and a proven ability in building successful companies with a focus on drug development and specialty pharma. We have a successful fifteen year track record in the provision of high quality, drug development services and are very well positioned to expand the unique Ergomed co-development partnership model. We look forward to benefitting from Rolf's knowledge and expertise as we continue to expand internationally and take Ergomed to the next stage of its development."  

Rolf Stahel, newly appointed Non-Executive Chairman of Ergomed, said:  "There are two aspects of Ergomed that I find compelling. Firstly, the base business is an international, profitable and fast growing clinical research organisation. Secondly, the rapidly expanding co-development business for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in exchange for a share of future royalties provides high potential upside.  I look forward to helping build Ergomed into a significant healthcare company."    

Rolf Stahel, a Swiss national, is a graduate in Business Studies (KSL, CH) and attended 97th AMP (Harvard). He worked for 27 years with Wellcome plc in Switzerland, Italy, Thailand, Singapore and the UK. As Regional Director, based in Singapore, Rolf was responsible for 18 Pacific Rim countries. His last position with Wellcome was Director of Group Marketing, based in the UK covering Group Strategy, R&D portfolio evaluation, marketing of existing and new products and business development. In this position, Rolf reported to the Chief Executive of Wellcome.

Rolf joined Shire Pharmaceuticals Group plc in March 1994 as its Chief Executive. At this time the Company was privately held and had an estimated value of approximately $30m, revenues of $3m and 50 employees.  Nine years later, Shire was a FTSE 100 Company, had a market capitalisation of approximately $3.2bn*, revenues of $1.1bn and 1,800 employees.

Rolf sits on the Advisory Board of Imperial Business School (Imperial College London). He has been non-executive Chairman of several companies including: Newron Pharmaceuticals; Cosmo Pharmaceuticals; PowderMed; EUSA Pharma. He is currently non-executive chairman of Connexios Life Sciences and Midatech.

About Ergomed  

Founded in 1997, Ergomed is a profitable UK-based company, dedicated to the development of new drugs and the provision of specialised services to the pharmaceutical industry. It operates in over 40 countries employing more than 250 people across five continents.  

Since its formation in 1997, Ergomed has been providing expertise in clinical development and trial management for over 40 clients ranging from top 10 pharmaceutical companies to small and mid-sized drug development companies. Ergomed has a wide therapeutic focus, but has particular expertise in oncology, neurology and immunology and the development of orphan drugs. Ergomed believes its approach to clinical trials is differentiated from that of other providers by its innovative Study Site Management model and the use of Study Physician Teams, resulting in a close relationship between Ergomed and the physicians involved in clinical trials. , As well as providing high quality clinical development services, Ergomed is building a portfolio of co-development partnerships with pharma and biotech companies which share the risks and rewards of drug development. Ergomed leverages its expertise and services in return for carried interest in the drugs under development.  For further information, visit: http://ergomedgroup.com

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SOURCE Ergomed