SAN DIEGO, Nov. 26, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zogenix, Inc. (Nasdaq:ZGNX), a pharmaceutical company commercializing and developing products for the treatment of central nervous system disorders and pain, today announced the appointment of R. Scott Shively to serve as executive vice president and chief commercial officer. Scott previously served as vice president - global commercial disease area lead for pain for Pfizer, Inc. Scott will be responsible for all of Zogenix's commercial strategies and operations including the currently marketed product, SUMAVEL® DosePro®, and the anticipated launch of the company's product candidate, ZohydroTM ER (hydrocodone bitartrate extended release capsules) which is pending FDA approval. In addition he will be a key member of the executive leadership team focused on strategic direction, product in-licensing, co-development opportunities and the established co-promotion with Covidien.
Scott has over 30 years of pharmaceutical industry experience in a variety of sales and marketing leadership positions including responsibility for early stage programs and an impressive list of successfully commercialized products, with extensive experience in pain. In his most recent role at Pfizer, Scott had global commercial leadership responsibility for Pfizer's primary care pain franchise including products such as Lyrica, Celebrex and Embeda, as well as for all pain pipeline products, and was the lead interface for Pfizer's Pain discovery research unit. Also while at Pfizer, Scott was heavily involved in the establishment and potential business expansion of Pfizer's new Integrated Health Business Unit. Prior to Pfizer, Scott was senior vice president for commercial operations at Alpharma Pharmaceuticals, a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on pain management. As senior vice president for global respiratory as well as interim president and chief executive officer, USA at Altana AG, Scott was responsible for the company's U.S. operations, including a sales force of over 500 representatives. Previous to that, Scott had a variety of sales, marketing and international and domestic commercial leadership roles at subsidiaries of Sanofi-Aventis for nearly 20 years. Scott holds a B.S. in Zoology from Duke University with a pre-medical focus.
"Because of his extensive experience in building commercial organizations, successful brands and companies of all sizes, Scott is the ideal choice to join our Zogenix executive leadership team at this critical and exciting time. We have the potential of launching a new product, expanding our commercial organization and pursuing a range of corporate development opportunities," said Roger Hawley, chief executive officer of Zogenix. "Scott's commercial expertise will add important depth and breadth to our executive team. He understands our vision as well as the challenges and opportunities we face. Scott's experience with pain therapeutics will add keen insights into a complex market including vital compliance and safe-use requirements for the product."
Scott Shively said, "The milestones Zogenix has already achieved in just 6 years are impressive. The portfolio, the DosePro platform and the commercial organization's growth potential, which are supported by a high-quality team with an experienced board of directors, all attracted me to Zogenix. I believe my experience, not only in the pain market but also with partnering opportunities and successfully building brands, will provide benefits now and into the next phase of the company's growth. It's an exciting time to join and to make a contribution to the ongoing success of Zogenix."
About Zogenix
Zogenix, Inc., with offices in San Diego and Emeryville, California, is a pharmaceutical company commercializing and developing products for the treatment of central nervous system disorders and pain. Zogenix's first commercial product, SUMAVEL® DosePro® (sumatriptan injection) Needle-free Delivery System, was launched in January 2010 for the acute treatment of migraine and cluster headache. Zogenix's lead investigational product candidate, ZohydroTM ER (hydrocodone bitartrate) is an oral, novel extended-release formulation of various strengths of hydrocodone without acetaminophen intended for administration every 12 hours for around the clock management of moderate to severe chronic pain. Zogenix's second DosePro investigational product candidate, ReldayTM, is a proprietary, long-acting injectable formulation of risperidone for the treatment of schizophrenia. In May 2012, Zogenix submitted to the FDA a New Drug Application for Zohydro ER and an Investigational New Drug Application for Relday. The FDA assigned a PDUFA target action date of March 1, 2013 for the Zohydro ER NDA.
For additional information, please visit www.zogenix.com.
SUMAVEL ®, DosePro ®, ReldayTM and ZohydroTM ER are trademarks of Zogenix, Inc.