Leadership
Meet Our Senior Leadership
Jeffrey M. Dayno, M.D., is President and Chief Executive Officer of Harmony Biosciences. A nationally recognized expert in neuroscience and leader at Harmony Biosciences since the company’s inception, Dr. Dayno is responsible for overseeing the company’s business growth including Harmony’s successful acquisitions of Zynerba Pharmaceuticals in 2023 and Epygenix Therapeutics, Inc. in 2024, advancement of Harmony’s clinical development programs, and buildout of the company’s pipeline. He has been the driving force behind Harmony’s patient-focused drug development model, which uses patient insights to inform clinical research programs and building a pipeline focused on potential, next-generation, innovative treatments to help people living with rare neurological diseases and unmet medical needs.
Dr. Dayno is a neurologist with 10 years of experience in clinical and academic medicine followed by over 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, touching every aspect of the business. He has held leadership roles at Merck & Co., Cephalon, and ViroPharma, building and leading clinical, regulatory, and medical affairs teams toward multiple NDA approvals and medical support for successful product launches. He also served as Principal Investigator on numerous clinical trials and has published and lectured extensively on various topics around evolving pharma business models, value creation and impact, as well as on numerous topics within the field of neurology. In 2023, Dr. Dayno was named to the PharmaVoice 100 list and in 2024 he received the Frank Baldino Bioscience CEO of the Year Award from Life Sciences Pennsylvania, which recognizes visionary leadership and active participation to advance the life sciences industry.
Dr. Dayno earned his medical degree from Temple University School of Medicine, completed his residency training in Neurology at Temple University Hospital, and completed a fellowship in Stroke and Cerebrovascular Disorders in the Department of Neurology at Henry Ford Hospital, which held a National Institutes of Health program grant in stroke research. He is on the Board of Emalex Biosciences, is a member of the Board of Life Sciences Pennsylvania (LSPA), serves on the Board of Advisors for Life Science Cares Philadelphia, and is a member of the Board of Visitors of the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University. Dr. Dayno has served as the Industry Representative for FDA’s Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Committee, as well as served as an expert on several FDA industry advisory panels.
Kumar Budur, MD, MS, is the Chief Medical and Scientific Officer at Harmony Biosciences. He leads R&D strategy and Medical Affairs for Harmony Biosciences, and oversees the functional areas of Clinical strategy, Clinical Operations, Regulatory Affairs, Pharmacovigilance, Biostatistics, Portfolio Management and Medical Affairs.
Prior to Harmony Biosciences, Dr. Budur spent approximately 6 years each at AbbVie and Takeda, where he held positions of increasing responsibilities. A nationally recognized expert in Research and Development, he has overseen programs ranging from late discovery, early clinical development to late clinical development, and post-marketing studies. He has experience in progressing small molecules, biologics, drug-device combination through various stages of Development. Dr. Budur was involved with four New Drug Applications (NDAs) and was the lead for the registration clinical trials, submission, and approval process of two NDAs.
Dr. Budur was trained at Cambridge University in the UK, and Cleveland Clinic and completed his Residency in Psychiatry and Fellowships in Neurophysiology and Sleep Medicine. He is Board Certified in Psychiatry and Sleep Medicine and holds a master’s degree in clinical research from Case Western Reserve University. Dr. Budur has published over 45 original research papers in peer reviewed journals, edited four books, and chaired National and International seminars and symposiums.
Mr. Dierks is Chief Commercial Officer for Harmony Biosciences. Previously at Teva Pharmaceuticals, he held various leadership positions in Marketing, including Senior Director of US Pain Care, Sleep Disorders and Migraine Marketing. Prior to joining Teva, he held roles of increasing responsibility at several major pharmaceutical companies, including Janssen, Endo and Wyeth. Mr. Dierks has over 20 years of commercial experience, including several major product launches. He has led brand teams across numerous therapeutic areas, including CNS, Sleep Disorders, Pain Care and Migraine, as well as rare diseases.
He holds a bachelor’s degree from McDaniel College and a Master of Business Administration in marketing from the Temple Fox School of Business.
Mr. Kapadia is Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administrative Officer. He has over 25 years of life sciences industry experience across multiple therapeutic areas and has provided strategic financial oversight and guidance to companies both in the United States and Europe. Most recently, Mr. Kapadia served as Chief Financial Officer at Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, from July 2016 to March 2021 where he built upon the company’s key functional capabilities, developed, and executed financial and capital strategies to prepare for commercial launch. Prior to joining Intercept, Mr. Kapadia served in various financial leadership capacities over 19 years at Novartis International AG and Novartis affiliates in the United States, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. He also serves as a director of Molecular Partners AG, Passage Bio, and Alentis Therapeutics. Mr. Kapadia received a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Rutgers Graduate School of Management and a bachelor’s degree from Montclair State University and is also a US Certified Public Accountant.
Mr. Ulrich serves as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary at Harmony Biosciences. He has more than 22 years of experience advising in the areas of corporate governance as well as corporate, securities, and general business law, including in the pharmaceutical, broader healthcare, and technology sectors. Prior to joining Harmony in 2021, Mr. Ulrich served as VP & Deputy General Counsel and Chief M&A Counsel at Precigen, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, focusing on domestic and cross-border mergers, acquisitions, strategic investments, divestitures and other corporate transactions, key commercial agreements, corporate governance, securities, litigation and regulatory issues. He began his legal career in private practice at Hogan Lovells (in Berlin, New York City and Washington DC), where he represented multinational clients in a range of complex corporate matters and transactions across many industries, including life sciences and technology.
Mr. Ulrich received an LLM degree from the George Washington University Law School and a JD equivalent degree (State Exam) from Freiburg University Law School (Germany). He served as a judicial clerk at the Court of Appeals Berlin (Germany) and is admitted to practice in the US and Germany.
Ms. McCanless is the Chief Corporate Affairs Officer for Harmony Biosciences, overseeing communications, patient advocacy, government relations and public policy, industry and alliance management and corporate philanthropy. Together, these functions enhance Harmony Biosciences’ reputation and corporate brand through proactive strategies that enrich the quality and depth of relationships with key stakeholders both externally and with Harmony employees. As head of corporate affairs, Ms. McCanless leads this integrated team, establishing a strategic vision and driving successful campaigns that shape Harmony’s reputation, culture and corporate brand, and advance business objectives.
Prior to joining Harmony, Ms. McCanless was Policy Director at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck where she led the Healthcare Government Affairs practice, and strategically advised clients in all disciplines of healthcare on regulatory, business, and political issues and risks with a focus on achieving business objectives. Earlier in her career, she worked in varied health policy roles that earned her significant experience in product coverage and reimbursement, market creation, regulatory engagement, and federal healthcare programs, as well as message creation for and direct engagement with policymakers and agencies.
Ms. McCanless holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from East Carolina University.
Mr. Serafin is the Chief Strategy Officer at Harmony Biosciences and is responsible for leading the company’s corporate strategy, business and corporate development initiatives, and alliance management efforts, including the expansion of the company’s pipeline through the acquisition and licensing of novel rare disease therapies for patients with high, unmet needs.
Mr. Serafin has 20 years of experience in mergers and acquisitions and corporate legal counseling in the pharmaceutical, broader healthcare, and technology sectors. Mr. Serafin previously served as Vice President of Business Development at Marathon Pharmaceuticals, LLC, Vice President of M&A and General Counsel at AltaThera Pharmaceuticals, and Vice President of U.S. Legal Affairs and Associate General Counsel at Lundbeck Inc., where he oversaw and executed on transactions with valuations of up to $1 billion.
Mr. Serafin began his career in private legal practice, where he specialized in corporate transactions, provided strategic legal and business consulting advice to clients, and consummated both public and private deals, including acquisitions, divestitures, and collaborations.
He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Illinois, a Juris Doctor from the Loyola University Chicago School of Law, and a Masters of Business Administration from the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management.
Ms. Glover is Chief Compliance Officer at Harmony Biosciences where she is responsible for overseeing the strategic direction and the operational excellence of Harmony’s Corporate Compliance Program. She joined Harmony from Paul Hastings LLP, where she assisted in the development and launch of the firm’s Life Sciences Consulting Group. Prior to joining Paul Hastings LLP, she served 15 years in a Compliance Officer role at Teva Pharmaceuticals and inVentiv Health, now Syneos Health, and has a proven track record of strategically designing, enhancing, and implementing effective compliance programs based on business risk and organizational design while promoting a culture of compliance across the organization. Ms. Glover has more than 35 years of life sciences industry experience in areas related to manufacturing, commercial, medical affairs, clinical operations, patient services, and corporate compliance and has held roles of increasing responsibility at several major pharmaceutical companies, including Aventis, now Sanofi Aventis, Pharmacia, Pfizer, and Teva.
Ms. Glover holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business management from Baker University.
Ms. Murphy is the Vice President of Human Resources at Harmony Biosciences. She is responsible for leading Harmony’s Human Resources team and the design and execution of all HR programs, as well as championing the Harmony culture. Ms. Murphy brings to her role over 30 years’ experience in the pharmaceutical industry as a strategic HR business leader in both R&D and Commercial organizations in large, mid-size and startup environments. Previously, she has served as Director of Human Resources at Ironshore Pharmaceuticals, and as a global HR Business Leader in R&D at GlaxoSmithKline, where she provided strategic HR leadership to drive and navigate change, increase organizational capability, and develop and align talent to meet business performance goals. Prior to GSK, Audrey held HR positions of increasing scope and responsibility over 10 years at Nycomed Amersham, now GE Healthcare.
Ms. Murphy holds a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Psychology from Pennsylvania State University.
Mr. Bradshaw is the Head of Technical Operations at Harmony Biosciences and is responsible for leading the company’s manufacturing, chemistry and controls (CMC) development and quality assurance functions, including manufacturing and supply management strategies for the company’s commercial drug products. With over 35 years of experience in pharmaceutical manufacturing, he previously served as head of manufacturing for a series of start-up biopharmaceutical companies, including PTC Therapeutics, Marathon Pharmaceuticals, Recordati Rare Diseases, Lundbeck, Inc., Ovation Pharmaceuticals, and Pathogenesis. In these roles, Mr. Bradshaw provided leadership oversight and led manufacturing operations, resulting in the successful launch of new products across various therapeutic areas, ensuring both the quality and continuity of the commercial supply chain. At Harmony, he is responsible for developing the infrastructure, policies, and procedures to ensure all products are manufactured according to safety and quality standards.
Mr. Bradshaw holds a B.S. degree in Chemistry from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
Paragon Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Paragon Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Jeffrey S. Aronin is a bioscience entrepreneur known for innovating, developing and commercializing a record number of novel neurology medicines that improve the lives of seriously ill patients who have few or no treatment options.
In 2017, Jeff founded Paragon Biosciences, where he is chairman and chief executive officer. Paragon is a global life science leader that creates, builds and funds innovative biology-based companies. It accelerates scientific breakthroughs to solve some of society’s most challenging medical problems.
Paragon’s portfolio of high-growth companies includes Harmony Biosciences (NASDAQ: HRMY), Emalex Biosciences and CiRC Biosciences.
Jeff sits on corporate and civic boards including The Aspen Institute and the Weizmann Institute of Science and served 14 years as a Discover Financial Services board member.
Harmony Biosciences
Harmony Biosciences
Jeffrey M. Dayno, M.D., is President and Chief Executive Officer of Harmony Biosciences. A nationally recognized expert in neuroscience and leader at Harmony Biosciences since the company’s inception, Dr. Dayno is responsible for overseeing the company’s business growth including Harmony’s successful acquisitions of Zynerba Pharmaceuticals in 2023 and Epygenix Therapeutics, Inc. in 2024, advancement of Harmony’s clinical development programs, and buildout of the company’s pipeline. He has been the driving force behind Harmony’s patient-focused drug development model, which uses patient insights to inform clinical research programs and building a pipeline focused on potential, next-generation, innovative treatments to help people living with rare neurological diseases and unmet medical needs.
Dr. Dayno is a neurologist with 10 years of experience in clinical and academic medicine followed by over 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, touching every aspect of the business. He has held leadership roles at Merck & Co., Cephalon, and ViroPharma, building and leading clinical, regulatory, and medical affairs teams toward multiple NDA approvals and medical support for successful product launches. He also served as Principal Investigator on numerous clinical trials and has published and lectured extensively on various topics around evolving pharma business models, value creation and impact, as well as on numerous topics within the field of neurology. In 2023, Dr. Dayno was named to the PharmaVoice 100 list and in 2024 he received the Frank Baldino Bioscience CEO of the Year Award from Life Sciences Pennsylvania, which recognizes visionary leadership and active participation to advance the life sciences industry.
Dr. Dayno earned his medical degree from Temple University School of Medicine, completed his residency training in Neurology at Temple University Hospital, and completed a fellowship in Stroke and Cerebrovascular Disorders in the Department of Neurology at Henry Ford Hospital, which held a National Institutes of Health program grant in stroke research. He is on the Board of Emalex Biosciences, is a member of the Board of Life Sciences Pennsylvania (LSPA), serves on the Board of Advisors for Life Science Cares Philadelphia, and is a member of the Board of Visitors of the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University. Dr. Dayno has served as the Industry Representative for FDA’s Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Committee, as well as served as an expert on several FDA industry advisory panels.
Capsida Biotherapeutics
Capsida Biotherapeutics
Peter Anastasiou serves as Capsida’s Chief Executive Officer and member of the board of directors. He has over 30 years of experience managing multifunctional and diverse organizations, leading them to achieve ambitious shared goals. During his tenure as Capsida’s CEO, he led the expansion of the company’s partnership with AbbVie into a new therapeutic area and created a new partnership with Eli Lilly & Co, raising a total of $125 million upfront and the potential for >$1.2 billion in milestones and royalties between the two deals. Before Capsida, Mr. Anastasiou served as an Executive Vice President, member of the global executive committee, and President of North American operations at Lundbeck. As President of Lundbeck’s U.S. and Canadian operations, Mr. Anastasiou led as many as 1,200 employees, achieved annual net revenues of >$1.5 billion with margins of >60%, played a pivotal role in developing, launching and/or commercializing multiple products (Rexulti, Trintellix, Abilify Maintena, Vyepti, Northera, Onfi, Sabril, Xenazine), and built the company’s cross-functional capabilities. Prior to Lundbeck, he held management roles at Neuronetics, Inc. (NeuroStar TMS Therapy), Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (Abilify), and Eli Lilly & Company (Cymbalta). Mr. Anastasiou represented Lundbeck on the board of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) for more than four years and currently serves on the global advisory board for the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association. He was named the 2019 HBA Honorable Mentor and one of the 2020 PharmaVOICE 100. He holds an M.B.A. from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University and a B.A. in economics and management from Albion College (MI).
Valor Equity
Valor Equity
Juan is a Partner and Co-President of Valor and is primarily responsible for its capital raise and client service functions. In addition, Juan focuses on investment prospect generation, due diligence of potential investments, and investment structuring and execution. Juan serves as a member of all Valor Investment Committees and currently serves on the Boards of Directors of Harmony Biosciences and Addepar, and as a Board Observer for Dataminr and BlueVoyant. Juan has been involved with Valor since 2008, initially as an Advisor. He joined Valor on a full-time basis in 2010.
Juan has over 25 years of private equity investing and investment banking experience. Before joining Valor, Juan was a Managing Director with Goldman Sachs, in the firm’s Investment Banking Division. As a part of the investment banking team, he held several positions, including membership in the private equity coverage group, the division’s senior management team, and as a coverage and execution banker for clients in Latin America. Following Goldman Sachs, Juan partnered with a law school friend to grow and scale Augeo Affinity Marketing. Together with his business partner, Juan grew Augeo into a leading private company in the affinity and loyalty industry. Juan currently is Co-Chairman of the Board of Augeo and focuses on the company’s efforts in identifying and developing new strategic initiatives.
In addition to his Valor responsibilities, Juan serves on the Boards of Directors of several charitable and professional organizations nationally and in New York City, including The Frick Collection and Lenox Hill Neighborhood House. He also is the Co-President of the Board of The Hewitt School. He sits on the Advisory Board of Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and served on the Board of Visitors of Stanford Law School. He was appointed by President George Bush to the President’s Advisory Council on the Arts for the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center. He also is a founding member of the Advisory Council of the My Brother’s Keeper Alliance (an initiative of the Obama Foundation). Most recently, Juan was appointed by President Joseph Biden to serve as a Member on the Board of Visitors of the United States Military Academy. Juan serves on the Board of the National Association of Investment Companies, which promotes diversity in the U.S. private equity industry.
Juan holds an A.B. in History from Princeton University. He studied history at the University of Oxford, Mansfield College and holds a J.D. from Stanford Law School. He is formerly an officer in the United States Army Reserve.
Valor Equity
Valor Equity
Antonio is the Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Investment Officer of Valor. Antonio founded Valor in 1995. He has over 25 years of experience in private equity investing. Antonio was a Director of Tesla from 2007 to 2021. During his tenure, he served as Lead Independent Director for eight years, and helped take Tesla public. He is a Director of several Valor portfolio companies, including Space Exploration Technologies. He is a member of all Valor Investment Committees.
Antonio is actively involved in philanthropic activities. He is a trustee of The Aspen Institute, a member of the board of visitors of the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, and a member of the board of visitors of the University of Chicago Law School. Additionally, he is a member of the board of the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago and a member of the University of Chicago Board of Trustees.
In 2015, Antonio was appointed to the Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship Program, chaired by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker. The program was a first-of-its-kind collaboration among the White House, entrepreneurs, the Department of Commerce, the Department of State, and the U.S. Agency for International Development. He is a 2009 Henry Crown Fellow, an Aspen Institute program designed to engage the next generation of leaders in the challenge of community spirited leadership. In 2008, Antonio received the Immigrant & Refugee Contributions Award for Entrepreneurial & Business Leadership from Changing Worlds, an educational arts non-profit organization.
Prior to founding Valor, Antonio was the Founder and Managing Member of MG Capital where he acquired and acted as Chief Executive Officer for a number of manufacturing and technology related companies. At MG Capital, together with the team that is still together at Valor today, he developed the operational skills that Valor uses to help its portfolio companies achieve scale and enhance their value. Prior to MG Capital he was at Goldman Sachs.
Antonio holds a joint B.S. and M.S.F.S. (Honors Degree) in International Finance and Economics from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. He also studied corporate structures and economic development at Waseda University in Tokyo. Prior to completing his Masters, Antonio returned to Japan as a Nikko Securities Fellow. Antonio holds a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School.
Independent Board Member & Consultant
Independent Board Member & Consultant
Gary Sender is the retired Chief Financial Officer of Nabriva Therapeutics. He was in this role from 2016 until 2021. Prior to joining Nabriva, he served as CFO and executive vice president at Synergy Pharmaceuticals from 2015 to 2016. From 2009 until 2015, Mr. Sender served as senior vice president, finance, at Shire, supporting its specialty pharmaceuticals business and subsequently its global commercial businesses. Prior to joining Shire, Mr. Sender served as the founding CFO of Tengion from August 2004 to July 2009. Mr. Sender also spent 15 years in several leadership roles within Merck. Mr. Sender received his B.S. from Boston University and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University.
Discover Financial Services
Discover Financial Services
Mark Graf served as Chief Financial Officer of Discover Financial Services, a publicly traded financial services company, from April 2011 to September 2019, including service as the company’s Chief Accounting Officer from April 2011 to December 2012. Prior to joining Discover, he served as an Investment Advisor at Aquiline Capital Partners from 2008 to 2010 and a Partner at Barrett Ellman Stoddard Capital Partners from 2006 to 2008. Mr. Graf also served in various roles at Fifth Third Bancorp from 2001 to 2006 and AmSouth Bancorporation from 1994 to 2001. Mr. Graf currently serves on the board of directors of Harmony Biosciences Holdings, Inc., a publicly traded commercial-stage pharmaceutical company, since November 2020. He also serves on the board of directors of Castle Creek Biosciences, Inc., a privately held clinical-stage cell and gene therapy company, since 2021; and on the board of directors of Marqueta, Inc., a developer of advanced infrastructure and tools for building highly configurable payment cards, since July 2024. He previously served on the board of directors of BNC Bancorp, formerly a publicly traded bank holding company, from 2010 to 2011. Mr. Graf holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the Wharton School.
McCann Health
McCann Health
Ms. Szyper served as Chief Operating Officer of McCann Health from 2018 to 2021, where she was responsible for the overall operations of its global healthcare network. From 2014 to 2017 she was the Chief Commercial Officer at Circassia Pharmaceuticals, a publicly traded biotechnology and medical device company headquartered in the United Kingdom, where she spearheaded business strategy and commercial direction. Prior to Circassia, she was Chief Development Officer of the Publicis Healthcare Communications Group, which followed executive roles at Searle Pharmaceuticals and Serono Laboratories. Ms. Szyper currently sits on the Board of Harmony Biosciences. She earned a BS in Biomedical Engineering from Northwestern University and an MBA from DePaul University.
HBM Healthcare Investments (Cayman) Ltd
HBM Healthcare Investments (Cayman) Ltd
Successful healthcare entrepreneur and investor with over 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. MSc and PhD in chemistry and biochemistry from the University of Berne, Switzerland. Previously co-owner and CEO of ANAWA Holding AG and Clinserve AG, two Contract Research Organisations specialising in analytical services. Board member of Harmony Biosciences, Buchler, and Pacira Pharmaceuticals.
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