Board of Directors

Gordon H. Busenbark is currently Chief Financial Officer of Xytis Pharmaceuticals, and has previously served as Chief Financial Officer of Encysive Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Busenbark has also held various financial, operational and general management positions at Baxter Healthcare for over 20 years.

Michel Lagueux
Executive Chairman and Interim CEO, BioSyntech

Michel Lagueux is currently Executive Chairman and Interim Chief Executive Officer of BioSyntech. He has previously served at senior positions in the venture capital and development capital industry, and helped launch many bio-pharmaceutical start-ups in the past 20 years. Mr. Lagueux was also Chief Executive Officer of Canacure Corporation, and as a consultant he has provided strategic planning advice to numerous Canadian and European life sciences companies.

Raj Maheshwari
Founder and Managing Director, Charlestown Capital Advisors

Raj Maheshwari is the founder and Managing Director of Charlestown Capital Advisors, a private merchant banking company specializing in financial advisory services to public and private market emerging companies. Prior to that, he has a long career in investment management and banking, and has been a member of Akela's Board of Directors since June 2008.

Gregory McKee
CEO, Nventa Biopharmaceuticals

Gregory McKee served for many years as the Chief Executive Officer of Nventa Biopharmaceuticals, until the merger of Nventa with Akela. Prior to Nventa, Mr. McKee held Business Development and Corporate Development positions at Valentis, and Genzyme, as well as affiliations in international banking.

Bob Rieder
Chairman and CEO, Cardiome Pharma

Bob Rieder is currently Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Cardiome Pharma. Prior to his long and successful tenure as Cardiomes' Chief Executive he has extensive experience in venture capital and operational management. Mr. Rieder has served as Chief Operating Officer of DBA Telecom, Chief Executive Officer of Synapse Technologies, and as a director in numerous public and private technology companies. 

Robert O. (Bill) Williams III, Ph.D.
Professor of Pharmaceutics at the College of Pharmacy, The University of Texas at Austin

Prof. Robert O. (Bill) Williams III is currently Johnson & Johnson Centennial Professor of Pharmaceutics at the University of Texas at Austin. Prior to that, he has held various managerial positions at Rhone-Poulenc Rorer, Duramed, and Eli Lilly. Prof. Williams III was the founder and President of PharmaForm, currently a fully owned subsidiary of Akela, and has been a member of Akela’s Board of Directors since the acquisition of PharmaForm by Akela in January 2007.