InVivo Therapeutics lifts Toselli to permanent prez, CEO

InVivo Therapeutics (NSDQ:NVIV) said yesterday it made Dr. Richard Toselli’s spot in the corner office permanent, lifting him from acting CEO to prez and CEO.

Dr. Toselli will maintain his position on the company’s board and as its chief medical officer, the position he was given when he joined the company last July. Prior to joining InVivo, Toselli has held positions with Sanofi (NYSE:SNY), DePuy and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ).

“I am delighted to announce Rich’s full-time role as CEO. Rich has demonstrated clear vision, a strategic mind, and committed leadership in his time at InVivo. His background in surgical device innovation and neurological surgery is uniquely suited to the company’s focus in development,” board chair Ann Merrifield said in a prepared statement.

“I am excited about the opportunity to work closely with our seasoned leadership team and accomplished Board members and advisors as we chart the company’s path forward. Our priority is to focus on our core competencies, advance our breakthrough neuro-spinal scaffold clinical program, and achieve this progress in an expedited, cost-efficient manner. We continue to evaluate our strategic and financing options, regarding which we believe we have gained additional flexibility by entering into the recently announced stock purchase agreement with Lincoln Park. As we have previously announced, we are in ongoing discussions with the FDA, including the potential of a proposed randomized controlled clinical trial to supplement the existing clinical evidence we have attained in our Inspire study for our neuro-spinal scaffold investigational device. We expect to provide additional clarity on this clinical path in the second quarter of this year,” Dr. Toselli said in a press release.

Respicardia taps Sommerness as CEO

Respicardia said last week it named Peter Sommerness as its new chief executive officer.

Prior to joining Minnetonka, Minn.-based Respicardia, Sommerness served as a partner at McKinsey and Company, and has held the role of GM and cardiac electrophysiology VP at Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX), the company said.

“I’m excited to join Respicardia and its seasoned team at such a pivotal moment. With the major milestone of our first U.S. commercial implant, I look forward to building on this momentum in the U.S. market and to bringing this groundbreaking technology to patients suffering from the harmful effects of central sleep apnea,” Sommerness said in a press release.

Rehabilitation-focused device maker Performance Health said today it tapped former Alcon head Jeff George as its new CEO, taking over for Mike Orscheln, effective immediately.

The Warrenville, Ill.-based company said it also named former Baxter (NYSE:BAX) chair & CEO Harry Kraemer as its new board chair, also effective immediately.

Prior to joining Performance Health, George served on the Novartis group executive committee and as the divisional CEO of both Sandoz and Alcon. Prior to those positions, he operated as head of the emerging markets division at Novartis and as VP and head of the Western & Eastern Europe division.

“Jeff George is a highly skilled and effective leader who will augment and inspire our strong executive team as we continue on a path to sustainable growth through improved operations and customer service. The board and I are confident that Jeff will be able to harness the company’s product innovation and improved customer service and capture the numerous opportunities presented by the company’s existing and newly established customer growth channels. We thank Mike Orscheln for his contributions and wish him well. Today’s announcement is the culmination of a thorough evaluation process that we think has yielded the right person to lead Performance Health at this stage of its growth,” board member & majority owner Madison Dearborn Partners managing director Tim Sullivan said in a prepared statement.

“This is an exciting time in Performance Health’s march toward a very bright future, and I’m excited to have the opportunity to lend my expertise and perspective to Jeff and the very talented leaders at the company. Jeff is someone who knows how to motivate people toward achieving a common goal and I’m looking forward to supporting him as he drives continued growth, innovation, and customer focus across all industry segments at Performance Health,” Kraemer said in a press release.

“I am honored and excited to be joining the talented team at Performance Health. I strongly believe in the company’s mission to provide products that improve people’s lives, and there are great opportunities before us to accelerate growth and innovation across our markets. Performance Health’s commitment to its purpose has enabled it to develop longstanding customer and supplier relationships, unmatched scale, and market-leading brands that help consumers and patients live their lives and perform better. Combined with a talented team of employees, these attributes will advance our position as the leader across our clinical, retail, and international segments. I look forward to working with the whole Performance Health organization to deliver for our customers, patients, and consumers and enable us to achieve great things together,” George said in prepared remarks.

T2 Biosystems Inc. (NSDQ:TTOO) said yesterday it named John Sprague as its new chief financial officer.

Prior to joining T2, Sprague served as CFO at Caliber Imaging & Diagnostics and spent six years at GE Healthcare, eventually operating as US & Canada Core Imaging Division CFO.

“John joins us at a critical time for T2 Biosystems. As we plan for the U.S. launch of the T2Bacteria Panel and continued progression of our pipeline, we are excited to add John’s years of leading financial operations within growing companies to T2. His proven capabilities in building out finance teams, along with his experience leading M&A, equity and debt financings and strong accounting background will be the perfect fit for T2 during this period of growth and becoming a multi-product commercial company. On behalf of the T2 Biosystems team, I want to thank Darlene Deptula-Hicks for her contributions as CFO during this transition year and we wish her the best in her future endeavors,” prez & CEO John McDonough said in a prepared statement.

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Lima names Marin as CFO

Lima Corporate said late last week it appointed Michele Marin as its new CFO, replacing interim Giorgio Negri, effective in March.

Marin perviously served as chief accounting officer for Luxottica, and has held positions with multiple multinational companies including PriceWaterhouseCoopers.

“I am excited Michele will join Lima starting March as new chief financial officer. He will be a strong addition to the management team based on his vast experience as CFO. On behalf of all employees, I would like to welcome Michele,” CEO Luigi Ferrari said in a prepared statement.

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