Parth Chakrabarti, MPH, MBA, an experienced strategic leader in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry, will serve as UMass Medical School’s new executive vice chancellor for innovation and business development, joining UMMS this week, according to Chancellor Michael F. Collins.
Chakrabarti began his career as a medicinal chemist, before transitioning to a series of global business leadership roles in Fortune 500 companies, including Johnson & Johnson Innovation, Sanofi Genzyme, Becton Dickinson and Amgen. During his career, he has closed dozens of deals and has built innovation/strategy functions on behalf of several global organizations. Most recently, he served as vice president of business development at Vertex Pharmaceuticals in Boston, leading the company’s Portfolio Innovation and Business Development Operations. Previously, he was global head of business development-immunology at Sanofi Genzyme and was senior director of transactions and new ventures at Johnson & Johnson Innovation. In these roles, he focused on building close relationships with venture capitalists, biotech companies, academic researchers, entrepreneurs and incubators/accelerators worldwide.
Chakrabarti is co-inventor on multiple granted patents in the field of drug discovery, covering multiple therapeutic areas, and has co-authored multiple peer-reviewed research papers. He has three advanced degrees: an MPH in management and health policy from Harvard University; an MBA from the Indian School of Business, and a master’s degree with specialization in pharmaceutical chemistry from the Indian Institute of Technology.
“I am confident that Mr. Chakrabarti will meaningfully advance the work of his predecessor, Jim Glasheen, PhD, and our BRIDGE team, and serve as an expert consultant and collaborator with our faculty,” said Chancellor Collins.