Annexon, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANNX), a biopharmaceutical company, recently announced the addition of William "BJ" Jones to its board of directors. Jones brings with him 30 years of experience in the biotechnology industry, with a focus on U.S. and global commercial and launch operations.
Douglas Love, the President and CEO of Annexon, expressed excitement about Jones joining the board, citing his expertise and experience as valuable assets during a transformative time for the company. Jones' experience in scaling large organizations and executing commercialization strategies for novel medicines is expected to be particularly valuable as Annexon approaches commercialization for anx005, which targets Guillain-Barré syndrome, and anx007 for geographic atrophy.
Jones, currently serving as the Chief Commercial Officer of NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V., has a track record of commercial success at both large pharmaceutical and small biotechnology companies. He has played pivotal roles in driving mass-market product launch strategies for industry-leading brands. Notably, he was the Chief Commercial Officer for Migraine & Common Diseases at Biohaven Pharmaceuticals, which was acquired by Pfizer for $11.6 billion.
Apart from his current role, Jones has held executive leadership positions at Takeda Pharmaceuticals, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Boehringer-Ingelheim, and Nitromed. His experience includes significant involvement in large market product launches, such as Nurtec® ODT, Abilify®, Farxiga®, Pradaxa®, Bidil®, and Excedrin Migraine®. Additionally, he currently serves on the board of Apogee Therapeutics.
Jones' impressive background includes graduating from the United States Air Force Academy and attaining the rank of Major through his active duty and reserve service. He holds an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business and an MS in Industrial Engineering from Texas A&M University.
Annexon, known for harnessing classical complement-driven neuroinflammation to develop potential treatments for serious neuroinflammatory diseases, is currently focusing on C1q, the initiating molecule of classical complement's potent inflammatory pathway. The company's pipeline covers three therapeutic areas – autoimmune, neurodegenerative, and ophthalmic diseases – and includes investigational drug candidates designed to address the unmet needs of over 8 million people worldwide.
With the addition of William "BJ" Jones to its board of directors, Annexon aims to leverage his extensive commercial expertise and industry experience to further its mission of delivering groundbreaking therapies to patients worldwide. The market has reacted to these announcements by moving the company's shares -4.8% to a price of $4.61. For the full picture, make sure to review Annexon's 8-K report.
