Kyowa Kirin,
North American Leadership

Shannon Lindsley serves as Head of Strategy, leading short- and long-term business planning processes and employee engagement planning. She brings more than 20 years of industry experience, coming from Takeda, and previously working in leadership roles at Pfizer, Roivant Sciences and UCB. Over her career, Ms. Lindsley has held several sales leadership, marketing, strategy and operations roles, most recently developing at Takeda their commercial launch plan for a pipeline asset for rare forms of epilepsy, leading commercial planning efforts as well as the long-range strategic planning process.

A native of Denver, Ms. Lindsley earned her MBA from the Georgia Institute of Technology and her undergraduate degree from the University of Colorado.

Dan McNamara is an accomplished biotech and rare disease leader with over 25 years of experience, and 15 years focused on rare disease. During the course of his career, he has led the launch and commercialization of multiple specialty and rare-disease therapies with a consistent focus on building best-in-class patient support organizations that deliver exceptional experiences for patients and caregivers.

He joined Kyowa Kirin in January 2024 after serving as EVP of Commercial and Patient Strategy at Ambit. Earlier, he held senior leadership positions at Takeda Pharmaceuticals, Shire Pharmaceuticals and Homology Medicines. He began his career as a Clinical Consultant at Elan Pharmaceuticals focused on movement disorders, transitioned to training at Biogen, then became a District Manager at Bristol Myers Squibb, where he helped launch the company’s first biologic for rheumatoid arthritis — ultimately pivoting to his passion: patient services and rare disease.

Hallmarks of Mr. McNamara’s leadership style and success are an unrelenting focus on exceeding the needs of patients and caregivers during their treatment journey and for bringing out the optimal performance from the teams he leads.

Mr. McNamara earned his Bachelor of Science from the University of Albany and his MBA from St. John’s University.

Dr. Gunnar Kaufmann is the Head of Kyowa Kirin’s North America research site in La Jolla, CA. As part of Kyowa Kirin’s global research organization, he is also the Head of the Open Innovation Department, which seeks external partnerships to accelerate drug discovery and application of new technologies. Dr. Kaufmann is an immunologist, antibody engineer and chemical biologist experienced in discovery and preclinical development of small molecule and biotherapeutic drug product candidates, including monoclonal antibodies, bispecific antibodies, antibody drug conjugates, cellular therapies and vaccines. He has expertise in multiple therapeutic areas, including immunology and oncology, as well as in preclinical research strategies. He has, throughout his career, taken projects from inception through non-clinical R&D into clinical trials.

Prior to joining Kyowa Kirin, Dr. Kaufmann held senior positions in biotechnology companies and was faculty member at The Scripps Research Institute. He earned his BS degree in human biology from the Philipps University Marburg; his MS degree in human biology from the Ernst Moritz Arndt University of Greifswald; and his PhD in Biology from The Scripps Research Institute.

Jeremy Morrissey leads Commercial Operations for the North American office of Kyowa Kirin. He brings more than 20 years’ experience in commercial operations, analytics and marketing, with expertise in analytical-based approaches to driving commercial growth and supporting new product launches. He has successfully led cross-functional teams in strategic initiatives focusing on cost reduction and productivity improvement, resulting in improved performance and millions of dollars in savings. He has extensive knowledge of the pharmaceutical, medical device and CPG industries. Mr. Morrissey earned his MBA from the Fordham Gabelli School of Business and his BS in mass communications from the University at Albany.

Joseph Zarkoski leads Quality Assurance for the North American office of Kyowa Kirin. He brings 35 years of industry experience in quality, manufacturing and supply chain roles. He also has expertise developing processes and leading teams at both site and global levels. Over the course of his career, Joseph has also held leadership roles at Wyeth, Merck & Co., Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer and Shire. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Villanova University.

Dr. Mitchell Katz is an accomplished executive and clinical leader with more than 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors in the areas of preclinical and clinical research, pharmaceutical operations, and regulatory affairs. In his capacity as SVP of Global Clinical operations, he is instrumental in defining the strategic vision and operational framework that drive the company’s extensive global clinical development programs within the Global Development Organization.

Dr. Katz leads clinical operations teams across North America, Europe and Japan, championing continuous improvement initiatives that streamline processes and elevate performance at every stage of clinical development.

Dr. Katz’s impressive career journey includes key senior leadership positions at innovative biotech startups such as Acorda Therapeutics, InterMune, Connetics and NABI. He has also served as VP of Development Operations at Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and Head of Clinical Research and Drug Safety Operations at Purdue Pharma L.P. Earlier in his career, Dr. Katz contributed to successful regulatory milestones at Eisai, Ortho Biotech, and Schering-Plough, playing an integral role in seven New Drug Application approvals.

Dr. Katz holds a BA in biology and a PhD in microbiology, with postdoctoral research experience from Downstate Medical Center in New York. His extensive scientific expertise and operational leadership continue to drive innovation and excellence in clinical development at Kyowa Kirin.

Patrick Adams leads Marketing Access and Pricing for the North American office of Kyowa Kirin. A pricing strategy expert, he is future-focused with the ability to gather and transform insights into strategy and has an established record of driving profitability across multiple therapeutic areas. Previously working for Sanofi, Novo Nordisk and Johnson & Johnson, he brings global market access experience in launching products within North America, Europe and Japan. He also has expertise in enterprise strategy development, with a focus on profit growth through pricing and market access strategies. Mr. Adams earned his MBA from Fox School of Business at Temple University and his BS from Miami University.

Paul Testa joined Kyowa Kirin in 2019 as EVP for Supply Chain and Operations. Along with ongoing oversight of commercial and clinical supply, his role includes oversight of the design and construction of Kyowa Kirin’s first North American manufacturing plant, scheduled for completion in Sanford, North Carolina in 2027. This facility will manufacture innovative biologic therapies, including next-generation antibodies.

Mr. Testa previously held senior executive positions leading global supply chain and operations at Shire (acquired by Takeda) and Johnson & Johnson — most recently leading 500+ professionals in 25+ countries, managing a supply chain strategic transformation, and helping Shire to grow its revenue from $3 billion to ~$15 billion. Mr. Testa earned his BS from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, his Master of Science Degree from Washington University, and his MBA from Boston University.

Ted Buckley is shaping and leading Kyowa Kirin, North America’s government relations, policy and advocacy team. Dr. Buckley brings a unique combination of data analytics, strategy insight and policy prowess to the Kyowa Kirin, North American leadership team. He has driven policy changes at both startups and established companies that positively impacted both the company and its external stakeholders, including patients. Dr. Buckley previously served as VP of Government Relations for Shionogi, where he led U.S. government affairs focused on infectious disease, and at Braeburn as VP of Government Affairs & Advocacy where he built the company’s high-performing government affairs function critical to advancing the company’s strategy. Also having worked at Shire leading their U.S. government affairs work, Dr. Buckley started his career as a consultant at McKinsey and Company, then worked for BIO as their economist and later with Bloomberg. Dr. Buckley earned his undergraduate degree in Mathematics from the University of Pennsylvania and his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business in applied economics.

Brian Kesselman leads the strategic planning and execution of information and communication technology across the North American operations of Kyowa Kirin. Mr. Kesselman joined Kyowa Kirin in February 2025, coming from KBI Biopharma, where he served as VP of Global Information Technology for a biological CDMO. He spent the majority of his 30-year career working in roles of increasing responsibility at Bayer. His most recent role was the VP, Digital Transformation and IT for the Commercial Americas region and the oncology strategic business unit. He has a passion for advancing business transformation through people, process, technology and data. Mr. Kesselman earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Boston University.