Management TeamExcellent Management Team
Howard Jarman Verrico, MD
Chief Executive Officer and Secretary – Director
Dr. Verrico obtained his medical degree from the University of Toronto in 1985 and has been a member of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia since July 1986. Dr Verrico is currently a practicing physician working in both emergency and general practice in the province of British Columbia. Dr. Verrico has served as the CEO, Secretary and a Director of Consolidated Ecoprogress Technology Inc. (an environmental technology company), a public company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange, from October 2002 to March 2004. In addition, Dr. Verrico has extensive experience as an investor in the junior capital markets providing both venture capital loans and a number of private placements. Dr. Verrico will devote approximately 35% of his time to the business and affairs of the Corporation.
Mark Senner, BSc.
President and Project Leader
Mr. Mark Senner joined Sirona Biochem in August 2008 as President and Project Leader. He brings to Sirona Biochem more than 20 years of experience in the life sciences industry with expertise in business development, sales operations, sales and marketing management and project management. Mr. Senner has held senior leadership roles with Merck-Frosst Canada, Bristol-Myers Squibb Canada, Solvay Canada, Novartis Canada and, most recently, Biovail Canada. Mr. Senner received his Bachelor of Science from the University of British Columbia and has additional certifications in sales and marketing leadership and management.
Bertrand Plouvier, PhD, PMP
VP, Research & Development
Dr. Bertrand Plouvier joined Sirona Biochem in June 2009 as Vice President, Research & Development. Since 2007, Dr. Plouvier has been a consultant for several start-up pharmaceutical companies, including Verona Pharma plc in the UK. From 1995 to 2007, Dr. Plouvier worked at Cardiome Pharma, where he established the company’s chemistry department. As Associate Director of synthetic chemistry at Cardiome, he contributed to the discovery and clinical development of Vernakalant, a new antiarrhythmic agent for the treatment of recent onset of atrial fibrillation, currently pending approval by the FDA. Previous to this role, Dr. Plouvier worked as a post-doctoral fellow in the chemistry department at the University of Alberta. Dr. Plouvier is a medicinal chemist who has discovered several pre-clinical and clinical candidates for the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias and cough over the course of his career. He obtained his PhD at the University of Lille, France in 1991 and a master in drug design from the Institut de Chimie Pharmaceutique de Lille, France. Dr. Plouvier is co-author of 12 publications and 6 patents. Dr. Plouvier took additional courses and obtained his certification as Project Manager Professional in March 2008.
Christopher Hopton,CGA
Chief Financial Officer
Mr. Christopher Hopton is Sirona Biochem's Chief Financial Officer. He brings 15 years of expertise in financial management and operations. His extensive experience covers areas of financial planning, accounting policy and business process improvement. As a business investment and finance consultant, Mr. Hopton has worked with several public and privately-held companies. Most recently, Mr. Hopton was the Chief Financial Officer of Central Resources Corp., a junior mineral exploration company. Formerly, he held the position of Division Controller at Canadian Airlines where he was responsible for an annual operating budget of $200M. Mr. Hopton was also involved in the restructuring of 360 Networks, a network communications company, which led to a buyout by Bell Canada. Mr. Hopton earned his Bachelor of Business Administration from Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, Canada and received his professional designation as a Certified General Accountant