VANCOUVER, British Columbia — January 12, 2026 — Leads & Copy — Zymeworks Inc. (Nasdaq: ZYME), a biotechnology company, has announced several leadership changes, including appointments, promotions, retirements, and reductions, to strengthen the organization’s capabilities. The changes are intended to align key leadership roles with the company’s corporate strategy announced in November.
Brian Cherry has been appointed to the Board of Directors, effective January 12, 2026. Mr. Cherry has over 25 years of experience investing in businesses across various industries, including healthcare and financial services. He was previously a Managing Partner at Oak Hill Capital. He has served on the boards of over a dozen private and public companies.
Mark Hollywood has been promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, expanding his responsibilities beyond Technology and Manufacturing Operations, Quality, and Alliance/Program Management.
Dr. Sabeen Mekan has been promoted to Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer (CMO), effective February 1, 2026. She will oversee clinical development, regulatory affairs, pharmacovigilance/patient safety, and clinical operations. Dr. Jeff Smith, the current CMO, will retire on January 31, 2026, but will continue to serve as an advisor during a transition period.
Leone Patterson, Chief Financial and Business Officer, and Daniel Dex, General Counsel, will depart from Zymeworks in the first quarter of 2026. Kenneth Galbraith, Chair and Chief Executive Officer, has assumed the role of Acting Chief Financial Officer while the company searches for a permanent replacement.
Additionally, Laura O’Connor has been appointed Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer. Other promotions and appointments include:
- Bijal Desai, Senior Vice President, Finance
- Lindsey Foulkes, Senior Vice President, Corporate Development and Strategy
- Charles Chen, Vice President, Translational Sciences
- Shrinal Inamdar, Vice President, Investor Relations
- Diana Papove, Vice President, Corporate Communications
- Victoria Spencer, Vice President, Treasury and Tax
- Lingxing Zheng, Vice President, Regulatory Affairs
Zymeworks is a global biotechnology company managing a portfolio of licensed healthcare assets and developing multifunctional biotherapeutics for diseases like cancer, inflammation, and autoimmune disease. The company’s strategy focuses on optimizing cash flows from licensed products such as Ziihera® (zanidatamab-hrii) and other product candidates like pasritamig. Zymeworks engineered and developed Ziihera, a HER2-targeted bispecific antibody using its Azymetric™ technology and has agreements with BeOne Medicines Ltd. and Jazz Pharmaceuticals Ireland Limited to develop and commercialize zanidatamab in different territories.
Investor inquiries:
Shrinal Inamdar
Vice President, Investor Relations
(604) 678-1388
ir@zymeworks.com
Media inquiries:
Diana Papove
Vice President, Corporate Communications
(604) 678-1388
media@zymeworks.com
Source: Zymeworks Inc.
