Raj Kannan has over 30 years of experience leading and developing global business franchises and building companies. He has effectively led and grown organizations and supported multiple successful launches across therapeutic areas in the U.S. and globally.
Raj Kannan previously was the CEO of Aerie Pharmaceuticals. He led the successful merger of Aerie Pharmaceuticals to Alcon, Inc. where the all cash transaction was consummated in mid November 2022. He also served as an independent director of Amryt Pharmaceuticals till it was acquired by Chiesi in April of 2023.
Prior to joining Aerie, Mr. Kannan was Chief Executive Officer and President of Chiasma, Inc., where he led the organization through the approval and the launch of the first oral therapy in over a decade for patients with acromegaly and subsequently through the acquisition by Amryt Pharma Plc. Before that, Mr. Kannan was Chief Commercial Officer at Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals, and prior to Kiniksa, he served as the Global Head of the Neurology and Immunology business franchise at Merck KGaA, where he led and transformed the largest franchise into a growth franchise with $2 billion in annual revenues through significant strategic shifts in investment to support new product introductions and through recalibration of pipeline investments. Before that, Mr. Kannan spent 10 years at Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH in the U.S., Canada, and in Germany, including as Global Marketing Head of the Cardiovascular Franchise, where he was responsible for more than $3.5 billion in annual revenues.
Claire Xu, MD, PhD, was appointed as I-Mab’s Vice President, Clinical Development in April 2024 to lead clinical development, clinical operation, clinical biomarker, project management and regulatory affairs. Dr. Xu joined I-Mab in 2018 as our U.S. site head, leading the establishment of I-Mab’s Maryland site and the continual growth of I-Mab’s clinical team. Previously, Dr. Xu held roles of increasing responsibility in Early Phase Development and Translational Medicine at Otsuka Pharmaceutical Development & Commercialization, where she was responsible for designing and overseeing multiple phase 1/2 studies of different therapeutic areas, including hematology/oncology. Dr. Xu received her PhD in clinical pharmacology from Indiana University School of Medicine and her Bachelor of Medicine degree from Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, China.
Before joining I-Mab, Dr. Dennis was Vice President of Lung Cancer Strategy and the Global Project Head for a novel, first-in-class ADC at Sanofi (NASDAQ: SNY). Prior to Sanofi, Dr. Dennis was Vice President of Lung Cancer Strategy and Global Clinical Lead at AstraZeneca (NASDAQ: AZN). In these roles, Dr. Dennis served as the disease strategy head for lung cancer and led the cross-functional development of key assets, including IMFINZI®. Prior to his pharmaceutical career, Dr. Dennis was a widely published professor of Oncology, Medicine, and Pharmacology at Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Dennis received his MS, MD, and PhD degrees from the New York University School of Medicine as part of the Medical Scientist Training Program. Dr. Dennis completed his residency in Internal Medicine and fellowship in Medical Oncology at Johns Hopkins. Dr. Dennis also spent 14 years as a translational researcher at the US National Cancer Institute, achieving tenure as a Senior Investigator. He is an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation and has won several awards, including an NIH Merit Award.
Joseph Skelton brings nearly ten years of investment banking experience with a focus on the life sciences vertical. During his career, he has advised on transactions totaling more than $20 billion.
Prior to joining I-Mab, Mr. Skelton served as a Senior Vice President in the Healthcare Investment Banking Group at Truist Securities, where he led the coverage efforts on the biopharma sector. During his tenure at Truist he focused on providing strategic and financial advice to life sciences companies. Prior to joining Truist, Mr. Skelton worked as an investment banker at Cantor covering the healthcare vertical. Mr. Skelton holds a M.S. and B.S. in Accounting and Business & Economics, respectively from Lehigh University.