BioMarin Announces Appointment of Cristin Hubbard as Chief Commercial Officer

March 7, 2024 |

5 min read

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (Nasdaq: BMRN) announced today that Cristin Hubbard has been named executive vice president and chief commercial officer.

Ms. Hubbard Brings More than 20 Years of Experience in the Biopharmaceutical and Diagnostics Industries

Appointment Effective May 20, 2024

SAN RAFAEL, Calif., March 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (Nasdaq: BMRN) announced today that Cristin Hubbard has been named executive vice president and chief commercial officer. Ms. Hubbard will assume responsibility for the company’s global commercial operations, effective May 20, succeeding Jeff Ajer.

Ms. Hubbard is a proven leader who brings to BioMarin more than 20 years of experience in the biopharmaceutical and diagnostics industries. She served most recently as the head of Global Product Strategy for Roche Pharma, where she was responsible for lifecycle management, accelerating delivery of the company’s medicines from development to commercialization, across five therapeutic areas. She was also accountable for delivering portfolio prioritization and integrated strategic plans across the company’s entire portfolio. Prior to that, she served as global head of Diagnostics Partnering for Roche Diagnostics, with responsibility for driving growth through licensing deals and acquisitions. Over more than 16 years at Roche and Genentech, she served in a number of senior roles across therapeutic areas, including immunology, infectious disease, oncology, ophthalmology and hemophilia. She brings significant expertise and leadership experience in both launching and growing successful new medicines.

“I am confident that Cristin is the right leader for our commercial organization as BioMarin enters this next chapter, bringing to the company expertise in lifecycle management and a strong track record of delivering growth across multiple therapeutic areas, successfully advancing programs from development to commercialization across a broad portfolio,” said Alexander Hardy, president and chief executive officer of BioMarin. “Her deep experience in the biopharmaceutical industry will add to the great talent I have seen across the organization since joining several months ago. We look forward to welcoming her to BioMarin and to the important work we will do together for patients.”

Ms. Hubbard started her career as a medicinal chemist at Theravance, before joining Roche and Genentech. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of California, Santa Cruz. She also completed the Graduate Program of Health Management at the University of California, Berkeley, earning an MBA from the Haas School of Business and an MPH from the School of Public Health.

“Throughout my career, I’ve seen firsthand the important role that medicines and diagnostics play in the prevention, treatment and management of serious diseases,” said Ms. Hubbard. “BioMarin has made incredible progress in transforming care for patients with serious medical conditions over the past two decades and I look forward to working with the team to increase that impact with the current portfolio and new product candidates.”

Mr. Ajer will continue to lead the commercial organization until May 20. He has worked at BioMarin for more than 18 years, including 11 as chief commercial officer. He played a pivotal role in the introduction of each of the company’s medicines, transforming care for thousands of patients.

“Jeff is a tremendous leader, whose expertise and guidance helped BioMarin grow from a small startup to a profitable, fully integrated biotechnology company,” said Mr. Hardy. “Under his leadership, BioMarin has built a strong and capable commercial organization and we are grateful to him for his outstanding leadership. On behalf of the company and our Board, I would like to thank Jeff for his many contributions to BioMarin.”

About BioMarin
Founded in 1997, BioMarin is a global biotechnology company dedicated to transforming lives through genetic discovery. The company develops and commercializes targeted therapies that address the root cause of genetic conditions. BioMarin’s unparalleled research and development capabilities have resulted in eight transformational commercial therapies for patients with rare genetic disorders. The company’s distinctive approach to drug discovery has produced a diverse pipeline of commercial, clinical, and pre-clinical candidates that address a significant unmet medical need, have well-understood biology, and provide an opportunity to be first-to-market or offer a substantial benefit over existing treatment options. For additional information, please visit www.biomarin.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements about the business prospects of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BioMarin), including, without limitation, statements about: expected leadership changes at BioMarin, including Mr. Ajer continuing to lead BioMarin’s commercial organization until his departure from the company and Ms. Hubbard’s appointment as executive vice president and chief commercial officer; BioMarin entering into its next chapter; and expectations regarding BioMarin treating more patients with the current portfolio and new product candidates. These forward-looking statements are predictions and involve risks and uncertainties such that actual results may differ materially from these statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among others: Ms. Hubbard commencing employment as anticipated; possible complications associated with the leadership transition within BioMarin’s commercial organization; BioMarin’s success in implementing leadership changes; and those factors detailed in BioMarin’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including, without limitation, the factors contained under the caption “Risk Factors” in BioMarin’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 as such factors may be updated by any subsequent reports. Stockholders are urged not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. BioMarin is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

BioMarin^® is a registered trademark of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., or its affiliates. All other brand names and service marks, trademarks and other trade names appearing in this release are the property of their respective owners.