STEVEN A. BJORNSON
1615 Fielding Lewis Way • McLean, VA 22101
Mobile 484.888.3017 • e-mail: sab68@cornell.edu
EXPERIENCE
2013 – Current MEDIMMUNE (Biologics Research & Early Development Division for AstraZeneca)
Vice President, Global Business Planning & Operations Gaithersburg, MD
• Lead planning and operations functions, responsible for strategic planning, contract management, physician payment transparency, capital planning & prioritization, and employee engagement
• Manage a direct budget of $8M supporting a diverse team of 30 staff in the US and UK
• Manage $100M capital budget, supporting facilities and R&D lab infrastructure across 3 sites
• Led departmental reorganization, establishing a vision for the new Team; flattened management layers; established business analytics and reporting capability; aligned with R&D functions to enhance customer engagement; implemented rigorous staff training regimen to up-level expertise
• Within first year, reduced contract cycle times by 45% while total contract volume grew 66% and achieving 95% customer satisfaction
• Led strategic planning process with MedImmune Leadership Team, establishing 5 year plan; responsible for MedImmune Scorecard development and implementation of annual goals
• Member – MedImmune Leadership Team (2015 – ), MedImmune Biotech Operations Leadership Team (2013– )
• Board Member – Montgomery County Workforce Investment Board (2015 – )
• Board Member (Delegate) – University of Maryland Baltimore Health Science Research Park Corp. (2014 – )
• Selected for MIT Executive Leadership Program (2014) & MedImmune Leadership Develop Program (2015)
2003 – 2013 PFIZER (formerly Wyeth 2003 – 2009)
2012 – 2013 Senior Director, Operations & Strategy, Vaccine Research & Development Pearl River, NY
2011 – 2012 Director, Operations & Strategy, Vaccine Research & Development
• Manage $230M in annual Vaccine Research, R&D Partner Line (e.g. Drug Safety, Pharmaceutical Sciences, etc.) and early clinical development budgets in support of 520 person Vaccine Research & Early Development organization
• Manage staff responsible for executing and tracking research agreements and clinical consulting contracts including FCPA (Foreign Corrupt Practices Act) assessments
• Led cross-functional team charged with assessing, negotiating and communicating the development operations’ external Alliance Partner resources needed to support Phase III development of a novel vaccine; resulted in program endorsement and $350M in funding
• Co-developed 3-year Vaccine Research Business Plan, detailing scientific areas of focus and rationale, budget, portfolio output and commercial opportunity; Plan endorsed by R&D Exec. Leadership Team
• Led implementation of the Partner Line Marketplace (PLM) across Vaccine Research; engaged Partner Lines to assess resources needed to support the portfolio, resulting in $35M in PLM budget
• Led assessment of R&D collaboration opportunities in Brazil, engaging premier academic and governmental institutions; partnered with the Emerging Markets Business Unit to create a vaccine co-development proposal; initiated recruiting plan to establish an R&D office in Sao Paulo
• Member of the Vaccine Research Leadership Team (2011-2013) & Vaccine Program Review Teams (2011-2013)
2009 – 2010 Director, Strategic Planning, Worldwide R&D New York, NY
• Coordinated Pfizer/Wyeth integration activities for Vaccine Research & BioTherapeutics Pharm. Sciences, resulting in ~$80M in annual savings; supervised R&D’s exit from North Carolina
• Partnered with SVP Clinical Programs on developing the division-wide R&D Strategic Plan; focused on Precision Medicine themes and novel patient selection approaches
• Developed 2010 Pfizer R&D Strategic Operating Plan (SOP); worked across functional lines to define strategic objectives and financial targets; SOP endorsed by the ELT and Board of Directors
• Co-led the Patient-Focused Drug Delivery Team tasked with developing recommendations to inform Pfizer’s investment in biologics drug delivery technologies
• Member of the R&D Management Advisory Council (2010)
2007 – 2009 Director, Discovery Research Strategy & Communications Collegeville, PA
2006 – 2007 Associate Director, Discovery Research Strategy
• Managed team (4 staff, $1.2M budget) charged with strategy development & execution for $300M, 1250 person Discovery Research org. focused on small & large molecule drug discovery spanning five research areas: Oncology, CVMED, Neuroscience, Bone & Tissue Repair, and Inflammatory Diseases
• Led the Discovery Portfolio “Clean Team” for the Pfizer/Wyeth integration; partnered with scientists, management and consultants to plan and execute the collation, review and transfer of materials, providing transparency for 150+ pre-clinical programs
• Led the evaluation and business case development for the successful acquisition of UK-based biotech Haptogen; integrated the site & 25 staff; negotiated government grant, reducing operational costs by 25%; selected for “2008 R&D Team of The Year”
• Partnered with senior management to implement several departmental reorganizations within Discovery Research following an R&D-wide Disease Area Review
• Led the development and implementation of 3-year business plan for Discovery Research
• Developed Discovery Research “Sourcebook” to facilitate integration with Pfizer; detailed departmental structures, remits, budgets, headcount, productivity, etc.
• Led “Project Impact” Automation Team, resulting in $6M in operational savings; participated on the Alternate Investment Team, establishing an incubator model and a novel biotech partnership
• Directed global assessment of Non-Human Primate CROs; engaged Singapore-based provider & government; led tri-party negotiations resulting in a 5-yr partnership securing access to NHPs & novel animal models; negotiated 40% grant aid resulting in $4M in savings
• Discovery Executive Council member (2006 – 2009); MBA Steering Committee member (2004 – 2009)
• Nominated by President of R&D and selected by CEO for special stock grant award
• Selected for Wyeth Research “Eagles” Leadership Development Program (2006 – 2008)
2005 – 2006 Sr. Manager, Discovery Research Strategy Collegeville, PA
2003 – 2004 Manager, Discovery Research Strategy
• Co-led the formation, negotiation and implementation of an $80M, 5yr Translational Medicine research partnership with four universities, the NHS and government in the U.K.
• Established Protein Optimization Lab in Ireland; negotiated terms with University College Dublin and secured government grant assistance of 37%, reducing expenses by $5M over 5 years
• Selected by the BioPharma Business Unit Head to develop a series of presentations and “Board Book” detailing Wyeth’s biotech strategy for the Board of Directors
• Obtained $2.1M in external grant funding from the Danish government for Parkinson’s research
• Developed business case to acquire $400M biotech; presented to R&D and Commercial Exec. Mgmt
• Developed “to be” processes to integrate new $60+M HTS facility into Discovery Research
2002 – 2003 GENUITY SOLUTIONS, INC. (now Level 3 Communications) Woburn, MA
Management Development Program: Product Manager
• Responsible for the development, pricing and promotion of a new firewall service offering
• Negotiated co-promotion of flagship security service reducing hardware costs by 10%
2001 SPRINT CORP. (now Sprint Nextel Corp.) Overland Park, KS
MBA Staff Associate Intern: Global Markets Core Business Strategy
• Analyzed trends in the provision of broadband Internet content to determine best practices in merging the creation and distribution of digital media for residential and enterprise customers
1996 – 2000 BAXTER BIOSCIENCE Thousand Oaks, CA
1999 – 2000 Information Systems Analyst
• Teamed to successfully implement a $4M Laboratory Information Mgmt System; supported 90+ staff
1998 – 1999 Quality Control Specialist II
1996 – 1997 Quality Control Specialist I
• Researched and validated test methods; coordinated, performed & reviewed microbiological assays
• Assisted management with regulatory inspections (e.g. FDA) and internal audits
EDUCATION
2002 CORNELL UNIVERSITY Ithaca, NY
Master of Business Administration
1996 OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY Corvallis, OR
Bachelor of Science, Microbiology (minor in Chemistry)
PERSONAL
• Interests: spending time with family, strategy games, movies, road trips and international travel
• Former Johnson Graduate School of Management Ice Hockey Team Captain & Coach