Meet our team

Can you give a brief introduction of yourself and your role at SMP Oncology?
I am the Senior Vice President, Head of US Research at SMP Oncology based in Lehi, Utah. I have been at SMP Oncology since it was established in 2020. Previously, I co-founded one of our predecessor companies, Tolero Pharmaceuticals. My role at SMP Oncology is to oversee all the science that is taking place, including the ideation of new ways to target cancer and how our drugs are provided to patients in first-in-human clinical trials. I manage collaborative and productive teams in the U.S. who, with our valued colleagues in Japan, help drive our shared scientific discovery engine.

What does purposeful science mean to you and how do you apply that in your role?
On the research team, we may not work with patients directly; however, purposeful science is central to all that we do. While we are at the bench evaluating preclinical models of disease, we are doing so with the patient top of mind. This is because the science we’re investigating will ultimately inform a drug program that will likely enter clinical development to potentially meet a patient need and become commercially available. As we think about the science at SMP Oncology, we’re not thinking in the abstract. We are focused every day on what we can do as a research team to best position our assets for the clinic and commercial success.

What do you find challenging in your role and what do you find most rewarding?
For me, it is both challenging and rewarding that we are looking to create a solution for one of the most complex problems in the world–cancer. This is an extraordinary industry because in drug development and research, we don’t have all the answers to most of our questions about cancer. The unknowns are a huge challenge to overcome, but it is extremely rewarding to be exploring the answers to these questions on the SMP Oncology team.

What do you think is unique about the culture at SMP Oncology?
The way that SMP Oncology encourages and rewards innovation is inspiring. There is a spirit of calculated risk taking within our organization in that we think outside of the box to identify creative solutions to our challenges. We are constantly pushing against industry norms and using innovative systems to improve our research approach with the support of our parent company, Sumitomo Pharma, Co., Ltd. SMP Oncology is unique in that we have the entrepreneurial spirit of a small company, with the resources of a much larger one.

What qualities do you admire in your colleagues and in SMP Oncology?
I admire my team’s initiative to listen and ask thoughtful, probing questions. From my colleagues, I have learned that listening and seeking to understand those around you contributes to an important part of transparency and ownership–values which are foundational to our work at SMP Oncology.

Can you give a brief introduction of yourself and your role at SMP Oncology?
I am the Vice President and Head of Data Science at SMP Oncology. I oversee four groups here including biostatistics, data management, data standard, and programming, as well as data science excellence and innovation. I joined the company in May 2017 when it was Boston Biomedical, one of the predecessor companies, which was also acquired by Sumitomo Pharma, Co., Ltd.

What do you find challenging in your role and what do you find most rewarding?
For me, the most rewarding part of my job is working alongside the talented, devoted data science team. One of the most challenging parts of my job was building the data science team into what it is today. When I joined our predecessor company, I led the organization in establishing and optimizing standardized procedures and identifying team members with the right experience to fill a gap within the company. Today, the data science team has 22 full-time employees and about the same number of contractors. Although this has been difficult at times, it has also been rewarding to build a team we can be proud of in order to address the needs of the company.

What makes you to proud work at SMP Oncology?
Our culture at SMP Oncology makes me very proud to work here. I see true ownership and transparency in every department and believe that every person has a voice. Together, we are influencing company culture, and I am proud to contribute not only to my individual team’s projects, but to the entire SMP Oncology mission. I’m honored to be part of a company led by some of the most resilient, hardworking scientists.

What do you think is unique about the culture at SMP Oncology?
Our teams are unique in that we spend time aligning on a certain strategy and then we begin execution immediately. While the basis of our decisions begins with a calculated risk assessment, the response time in executing a thought or idea is not prolonged, which is important in this industry and something I find unique about the teams at SMP Oncology. We are a company built of teams that are dedicated to working hard to advance therapeutic options for patients with cancer.