Management Team
Dianthus Therapeutics to Participate in Three Healthcare Investor Conferences in September
Mr. Garcia has served as our President and Chief Executive Officer since November 2021. Prior to joining Dianthus, Mr. Garcia served as Senior Vice President, Corporate and Business Development at Zealand Pharma A/S, a biotechnology company, from October 2018 to October 2021. Mr. Garcia previously served as Executive Vice President, Chief Strategy Officer at Synergy Pharmaceuticals from 2014 to 2018. Prior to Synergy, Mr. Garcia served as Head of Business Development for Aptalis Pharma when it was acquired by Forest Laboratories (now Allergan, an AbbVie Company) in 2014. Previously he served as Vice President, US Commercial Operations and Global New Product Development at Aspreva Pharmaceuticals, which was acquired by Vifor Pharma in 2007. Aspreva was developing CellCept (myocophenolate mofetil) for a range of autoimmune diseases, including Lupus Nephritis, Myasthenia Gravis, and Pemphigus Vulgaris. Mr. Garcia started his career in various commercial and strategic roles at large, multinational biopharmaceutical companies, including Merck & Co., Pfizer Inc. and Eli Lilly and Co. Mr. Garcia received his M.B.A. from the Ivey Business School at Western University in London, Ontario and his Bachelor of Commerce from Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec.
Dr. Stavenhagen is a recognized expert in early-stage drug development, with more than 20 years of experience building and leading research teams to advance new therapeutic candidates into clinical development. He was most recently Chief Scientific Officer at Therini Bio, where he directed R&D initiatives leading to the development of a first-in-class monoclonal antibody for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. He previously served in leadership roles at Therachon, leading preclinical research and CMC, and Lundbeck, advancing its first internal antibody programs into clinical development for neurodegenerative diseases. Dr. Stavenhagen began his biotech career as the first employee of MacroGenics, where he built a novel antibody engineering platform that resulted in Margenza®, one of the first Fc optimized monoclonal antibodies on the market. Throughout his career, he has authored over 40 scientific patents and publications. Dr. Stavenhagen received his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from Columbia University and performed post-doctoral studies at the Fred Hutchinson Research Center in Seattle.
Ms. Maximenko brings 15 years of human resources experience, having most recently served as the VP, Head of HR at Abeona Therapeutics where she was responsible for developing and executing people strategy and supporting the Company’s growth in a highly competitive gene therapy space. Prior to that she served as the Global HR Director and Head of HR for Advanced Accelerator Applications (AAAP), a Novartis company. Before the acquisition of AAAP by Novartis, she was responsible for more than 700 employees operating in a matrix environment within 11 International locations and in more than 20 US states.
Ms. Maximenko has hands-on experience setting up the HR function from the ground up in growing biotechs from pre-clinical to commercial stage and building out teams in various functional areas including R&D, Medical Affairs, Commercial, Quality, TechOps, and others. She’s got expertise in multiple HR disciplines, including talent acquisition, employee engagement, employee relations, organizational development and compensation.
Jennifer Davis Ruff has more than 20 years of experience in investor relations and corporate communications in the biopharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Ms. Ruff most recently served as Vice President, Investor Relations at Pyxis Oncology, where she led communications with investors and analysts. Previously, she held the roles of Vice President, Corporate Communications and Investor Relations at TESARO, Director, Investor Relations at Pfizer, and Director, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications at MGI Pharma. She earned a master’s degree in biotechnology from Northwestern University and a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Iowa.
Dr. Hashmonay brings over 20 years of international experience in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries to Dianthus. He most recently served as Global Head of Business Transformation for Novartis. In his prior role as Chief Digital Officer at Novartis United States, he spearheaded digital transformation and strategic corporate health tech partnerships. As a member of the Novartis U.S. Executive Committee, Dr. Hashmonay has led multiple teams as Head of Business Innovation, Head of Business Development and Licensing, and Head of Launch Excellence. Prior to joining the U.S. division, he served as Chief Scientific Officer and Head of Medical Affairs for Novartis Latin America & Canada. Dr. Hashmonay previously held a number of senior executive roles in Medical Affairs and Clinical Development at Novartis and Johnson & Johnson. He earned his M.D. and graduated Cum Laude from the Technion Israel Institute of Technology.