Brad Fackler Joins Maryland Commerce to Lead BioHealth and Life Sciences Team
Led sales and marketing teams at Novartis, Sucampo Pharmaceuticals
BALTIMORE, MD (May 5, 2016) – Brad Fackler, an experienced leader and innovator in the life sciences industry, has joined the Maryland Department of Commerce as the senior director of biohealth and life sciences. In his new role, Mr. Fackler will work to attract new life sciences companies to Maryland, as well as reach out to the state’s more than 500 current life sciences companies to help them grow and create new jobs. Fackler will also work closely with the Maryland Life Sciences Advisory Board (LSAB) to continue positioning Maryland as a top global biotech destination.
“We are fortunate to have attracted someone with the depth and breadth of knowledge of Brad Fackler to further strengthen this vital sector of our economy,” said Maryland Commerce Secretary Mike Gill. “Having worked in many areas of this industry, including leadership positions in sales and marketing at major companies, gives Brad a unique perspective in attracting new companies to the state, as well as helping our innovative sciences companies in Maryland grow and thrive.”
“I look forward to working closely with Life Sciences Advisory Board and Maryland’s dedicated life sciences community to build on the great work that has been done to advance Maryland’s position in the global life sciences community,” said Mr. Fackler. “Working for an industry leader like Novartis, as well as most recently heading up a start-up company, helps me to understand the tremendous opportunities and potential of Maryland’s life sciences companies and what we need to do to continue to grow the industry.”
Prior to joining Commerce, Mr. Fackler previously served as the CEO of Cellona Therapeutics, a start-up technology transfer company in Bethesda that focused on the oncology sector. While at Cellona, Mr. Fackler successfully raised nearly $400,000 to support the development of a metastatic melanoma treatment. He also was the co-founder and principal of Kinect Point in Bethesda, which provides strategic consulting services to the biotechnology and biopharmaceutical industries and helps companies improve business performance to maximize the value of the scientific technology. From 2005 to 2009, Mr. Fackler was the executive vice president of commercial operations for Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company in Bethesda, and led the domestic and global sales and marketing functions. Mr. Fackler spent more than 25 years with Novartis in East Hanover, N.J, where he held a number of leadership positions, including executive director of the hospital division where he led a sales team focusing on academic medical centers in the U.S. He has a bachelor’s of science from Otterbein University and an M.B.A. from New York University, Leonard Stern School of Business. He resides in Montgomery County.
Home to more than 500 life sciences companies and 50 research-intense federal institutes and outstanding academic centers including NIH, the University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins, Maryland is well positioned in the global life sciences industry and has been recognized as one of the top tier states highly specialized in overall bioscience development. Since the early 1990s, Maryland has focused on bioscience development and was one of the first states to develop a strategic plan for the industry.
About Maryland Commerce
The Maryland Department of Commerce stimulates private investment and creates jobs by attracting new businesses, encouraging the expansion and retention of existing companies, and providing financial assistance to Maryland companies. The Department promotes the State’s many economic advantages and markets local products and services at home and abroad to spur economic development and international investment, trade and tourism. Because they are major economic generators, the Department also supports the Arts, film production, sports and other special events. For more information, visit commerce.maryland.gov.
