Francois Menard, PhD – VP Business Innovation

Francois has been working for global innovator and generic companies in the pharmaceutical industry for over 35 years.  He has extensive experience in pharmaceutical development and has led various functions over the years, including Product Development, Clinical Development, Biopharmaceutics, Portfolio Management, Project Management, Regulatory Affairs, and Technology Transfer. 

Francois began his career with Ciba-Geigy US in Formulation Development and later held positions of increasing responsibilities at Schering-Plough and Johnson & Johnson.  He has had the opportunity to develop and bring to the market products developed via multiple technologies and for a variety of dosage forms: e.g., tablets (both IR and ER), capsules (HGC, Liquid filled HGC, and Soft Gelatin Capsules), Injectables (small molecules and peptides), Inhalation products, Dermatologicals, and Transdermals.  The scope of activities covered formulation design, development, scale-up, and commercial technology transfer (with a leading role in numerous Pre-Approval Inspections). Before moving to the industry’s generic sector, Francois was the Senior Director of Pharmaceutical Development at J&J, overseeing functions in Belgium, Switzerland, and the US. Dr. Menard worked for several global generic companies: Sandoz US as VP of R&D, Watson Pharmaceuticals as SVP of Global R&D, and Polpharma as VP of Global R&D.  In addition to leading the development of many generic products and the submission of more than 50 EU dossiers and 100 ANDAs, (including more than 20 First to File ANDAs) he was involved in R&D integration activities in the US, Europe , and India. 

In 2004, Francois joined Sandoz at their Headquarters in Germany as Global Head of Business Development, supporting the BD and co-development activities for the EU, Asia Pacific, North America, and Latin America. In 2017 he moved to Andorra Pharmaceuticals, a virtual company developing differentiated generic products with external partners in the US and China. 

Francois most recently created Amezerm LLC, a consulting company focused on Pharmaceutical Development and Business Development with partners and clients in the US, EU, and China. He is a dual citizen of France and the US and holds an Industrial PharmD from the University of Rennes, France, and a PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Rhode Island.