Leadership Team
Jerome Charton is a seasoned senior executive with a wealth of experience in global organisations. Prior to joining Clinigen Group as CEO in June 2023, Jerome worked for Arxada, a leading specialty chemicals business, where he was President of the company’s Microbial Control Solutions (MCS) business unit. Prior to his time at Arxada, Jerome enjoyed a successful 12-year tenure at Ecolab, where he held various senior positions before assuming the role of EVP & President of Global Markets, responsible for the company’s operations outside of North America. Earlier in his career, Jerome spent 15 years in commercial and management roles in the healthcare industry, including at Baxter International Inc. and Abbott.
Fernando Ballester is Clinigen’s Chief Financial Officer since August 2024. A seasoned global finance executive with over 25 years’ experience in complex, multinational organizations across various industries, including pharmaceuticals, industrial, FMCG and retail. His expertise includes M&A, business integration, optimizing financial operations, and supporting business growth, and his deep understanding of the global economy and passion for digital transformation to drive business success are key strengths.
Previously, Fernando served as Group Chief Financial Officer at ICE Pharma and held senior finance roles at Dover Corporation, and other leading global companies. He is a Certified Public Accountant, designated from Universidad Catolica Argentina, and earned an Executive MBA from Business School of Sao Paulo.
Nihad Hasagic is the Senior Vice President, Strategic Initiatives at Clinigen, joining the company in December 2023. Nihad has spent over 20 years in the Healthcare, Life Science and Specialty Chemicals industry working for Monitor, Ecolab and Arxada in various roles and functions having General Management and P&L responsibility, leading multiple acquisitions and integrations, and building and implementing various strategic marketing and corporate initiatives.
Nihad is responsible for driving the company’s strategic growth agenda, heading the commercial strategy for the recently established Clinigen Lifecycle Services unit, spearheading Clinigen's expansion into the Chinese market, as well as leading M&A efforts.
Nihad holds a Master of Electrical Engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich, Switzerland, and an MBA from Cranfield School of Business in the UK.
Alex Johnson is Chief Transformation Officer at Clinigen, joining the company in September 2023, and is driving the company's strategic end-to-end business transformation and optimising supply chain operations across Europe, the US, and the rest of the world.
With over 20 years of global experience in business transformation and supply chain management, Alex is a seasoned transformation and turnaround specialist, and his expertise spans operational excellence, supply chain optimisation, M&A integrations, business turnaround, digital transformation, and large-scale programme management.
Before joining Clinigen, Alex held leadership roles at both FTSE100 and S&P500 organisations including Royal Mail, BP, and Ecolab before working on a consulting basis on a number of business turnarounds.
Axel Degremont is the Senior Vice President Commercial at Clinigen, joining the company in November 2023, and is responsible for building and implementing Clinigen’s Commercial and Business Development strategy across Clinigen services globally.
Axel is an experienced sales and marketing leader with over 25 years’ global experience in the Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices industries across EMEA, US and APAC. Prior to Clinigen, Axel held senior sales and marketing positions in the Life Sciences divisions at Ecolab, as well as leadership roles at Covidien and Baxter International.
He trained as a pharmacist with a doctorate specialising in Microbiology from the University of Pharmacy Paris and holds a Master of Medical Business Management from the ESCP Business School Paris.
Suzanne has more than 20 years industry experience and is currently SVP of Managed Access at Clinigen, having joined in January 2013. Since joining Clinigen, Suzanne has been intricately involved in managed access programs; first setting up and running on behalf of clients and, since 2015, leading the growing Program Management function and now Business Unit and with oversight and governance responsibility across the Clinigen MAP portfolio. Prior to joining Clinigen, Suzanne worked client side in large pharma R&D within a range of technical, leadership and project management roles. Suzanne has a PhD in Chemistry.
Merav is a seasoned regulatory affairs professional with over 30 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry. As Senior Vice President of Pharmacovigilance, Medical Information, and Regulatory Affairs at Clinigen, she leads a global team dedicated to ensuring patient safety and regulatory affairs strategy and submissions, overseeing the Clinigen Lifecycle Services business unit.
Trained as a pharmacist with a master’s degree in Biopharmacy from King’s College London, Merav brings a deep understanding of drug development and lifecycle management. Having joined Clinigen in 2014, her expertise is instrumental in guiding Clinigen’s global projects through complex regulatory landscapes.
Merav is passionate about building high-performing teams and fostering a culture of excellence. Under her leadership, the Clinigen team delivers exceptional pharmacovigilance, medical information, and regulatory support to clients worldwide.
Rocco Barone is the Senior Vice President & Head of Clinical Supplies Management at Clinigen. Rocco holds a bachelor’s in chemistry and an MBA from Moravian University, US, and has more than 18 years’ experience in supply chain and GMP related processes. Rocco’s expertise includes implementation of latest operational strategies & technologies and operational management with successful application of lean methodologies. After obtaining his undergraduate degree, Rocco joined Merck & Co., Inc. as a Production Scheduler and subsequently held roles of increasing responsibility. His last position, before joining Clinigen in 2022, was Director and Site Head of Merck US Clinical Supply Operations.
Tom leads our Clinical Trial Sourcing Business and has held several senior roles since joining Clinigen in 2018, including VP of Finance. Earlier in his career, Tom was Financial Controller at real estate business CBRE and also worked as a Financial Analyst at Network Rail. Tom has a BA in Business & Managerial Economics from the University of Leeds.
Dr Varun Sethi is the Senior Vice President JAPAC at Clinigen, joining the company in August 2024. Varun is a seasoned healthcare executive with over 20 years’ experience across pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and diagnostics and has a deep understanding of the healthcare landscape in Asia Pacific. Varun is responsible for leading our business operations in the region, driving growth, expanding our market footprint, and delivering exceptional value to our clients.
Prior to Clinigen, Varun held senior leadership roles at DKSH, Fortis Healthcare and Baxter International. He has been a member of the boards of the Pharmaceutical Association of Malaysia (PhAMA) and Singapore Association of Pharmaceutical Companies (SAPI) where he served as Treasurer in both industry associations.
Varun holds a Ph.D. in pharmaceutical sciences from the University of Illinois, Chicago, as well as an Executive Certification in marketing and sales from the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, Chicago.
Carel is a pharmacist by profession and completed his master’s degree in pharmaceutical formulations. His passion for people and assisting healthcare providers and patients to access medicines led him to join Clinigen South Africa in 2009. He started his tenure at the African affiliate overseeing the unlicensed medicine department and established the company as the leading supplier of unlicensed medicine in South Africa. He continued his growth in the organisation and was responsible for business development in the African region. He was appointed as the managing director for the African affiliate in 2018. In his role he oversees the African affiliate which consists of various operational entities including licensed and unlicensed pharmaceutical products and medical devices. He has successfully expanded the organisation and onboarded partnerships with principles across the globe to market and distribute their products in sub-Saharan and East Africa.