Christoph Westphal, Sirtris

Company: Sirtris, a GSK Company, Cambridge, MA
Entry Submitted By: Pure Communications Inc.
Company Description: Sirtris, a GSK company, is focused on creating revolutionary new medicines to treat diseases of aging, such as Type 2 Diabetes. Our research focus is on modulating the sirtuins, a recently discovered class of enzymes involved in the aging process. Sirtris is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and employs 71 people.
Nomination Category: Management Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Executive of the Year - Other

Nomination Title: Christoph Westphal, M.D., Ph.D., CEO of Sirtris

Tell the story about what this nominee achieved since January 1 2008 (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

In the biopharmaceutical world, the name Christoph Westphal elicits immediate
recognition for his achievements as a dynamic, visionary leader.  Dr. Westphal’s
most recent success involves Sirtris, a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company
he co-founded in 2004 with Harvard researcher Dr. David Sinclair.  Under Dr.
Westphal’s guidance as CEO, Sirtris has become a recognized leader in the field
of sirtuin research, a recently discovered family of enzymes that control the
aging process.

In June of 2008, based on the company’s revolutionary scientific developments,
GlaxoSmithKline acquired Sirtris for $720 million – a “darling” deal in the eyes
of Wall Street.  Indicative of his philosophy that people matter most, Dr.
Westphal’s commitment to Sirtris’ employees and investors factored heavily into
the agreement with GSK.  Sirtris Pharmaceuticals then became Sirtris, a GSK
Company – an independent discovery performance unit led by Dr. Westphal, with
all employees and members of management remaining intact.  Sirtris’ employees
and investors alike were pleased with the $720 million cash acquisition by GSK
priced at $22.50 a share – an 84% premium to the $12.23 share price on the day
preceding the tender offer announcement, and a 125% premium to the company’s May
2007 initial public offering price of $10 a share.

Following the acquisition, Dr. Westphal has continued to operate the company in
a style similar to that prior to becoming an independent unit of GSK.  He has
retained Sirtris’ unique, entrepreneurial culture that encourages creativity and
rewards the company’s values of People, Excellence, Trust, Respect and Urgency.
 Sirtris offers a number of unexpected perks, including free lunch daily,
biweekly lunch seminars, spinning and yoga classes, and company outings to Red
Sox games.

Dr. Westphal has built a team environment that supports and rewards discovery.
A pioneer in its field, Sirtris’ drugs under development could potentially
address a broad range of diseases of aging, such as Type 2 Diabetes, cancer,
cardiovascular disease and neurodegeneration. The hot area of sirtuin research
caught the world’s attention with the discovery that resveratrol — a natural
ingredient in red wine — activates the sirtuins and could yield the positive
health effects of calorie restriction (previous research has shown that reducing
normal caloric intake by a third can extend lifespan). 

In addition to the acquisition, Dr. Westphal led Sirtris through an
extraordinary year of discoveries.  In January 2008, Sirtris announced positive
results from a human clinical study showing that its proprietary formulation of
resveratrol significantly lowers glucose in patients with Type 2 Diabetes.
Later in 2008, Sirtris entered into the first human clinical trial of one of its
novel compounds, which are structurally unrelated to resveratrol and up to 1,000
times more potent. 

In addition to his role at Sirtris, Dr. Westphal now serves as Senior Vice
President of GSK’s Centre of Excellence for External Drug Discovery (CEEDD).  At
the CEEDD, Dr. Westphal and his team are developing a network of external
alliances with world-class biotech companies to bring breakthrough medicines
into GSK.  This unconventional role relies on Dr. Westphal’s biotech experience
to identify emerging technologies to bolster GSK’s pipeline.

List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:

Boston Globe Sunday Magazine, “More Good Years,” February 1, 2009
http://www.boston.com/jobs/news/articles/2009/02/01/more_good_years/

60 Minutes, “Wine Rx,” January 25, 2009
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4752354n

Newsweek, “Never Say Die,” December 15, 2008
http://www.newsweek.com/id/172561

Dr. Westphal receives Outstanding Individual of the Year Award at the annual
Biotech CEO Meeting, October 16, 2008
http://www.sirtrispharma.com/press/2008-101608.html

New York Times, “Hoping Two Drugs Carry a Side Effect:  Longer Life,” July 22, 2008
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/22/health/research/22long.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=Hoping%20Two%20Drugs%20Carry%20a%20Side%20Effect&st=cse

Pharmaceutical Executive, “45 Under 45:  The Change Generation,” June 1, 2008
http://pharmexec.findpharma.com/pharmexec/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/524376

ABC News Special hosted by Barbara Walters, “Can You Live to be 150?,” March 28,
2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Longevity/story?id=4544003&page=1

Fortune, “Drink Wine and Live Longer,” cover story, February 5, 2007
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2007/02/05/8399158/index.htm

Sirtris media highlights clip on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_vJEeVdaKY

Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the nominee:

Christoph Westphal, M.D., Ph.D., co-founded Sirtris in 2004 and has since served
as Chief Executive Officer.  In addition to leading Sirtris as an independent
discovery performance unit within GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Dr. Westphal serves as
the Senior Vice President of GSK’s Centre of Excellence for External Drug
Discovery (CEEDD).

Dr. Westphal earned his M.D. from Harvard Medical School and Ph.D. in genetics
from Harvard University; and he graduated with a B.A. summa cum laude and Phi
Beta Kappa from Columbia University.  He enjoys traveling (he has visited over
130 countries), plays the cello and is fluent in four languages—English, German,
Spanish, and French.  Dr. Westphal is married with three young children.