With the company expecting to soon roll out the successor to its flagship device, NeuroMetrix Inc. (NSDQ:NURO) hired a new general manager to oversee sales and operations outside the U.S.
The Waltham, Mass.-based company — which markets devices designed to measure nerve conductivity and help relieve pain — this week brought on Krishnamurthy Balachandran as a senior vice president and general manager for international operations.
Balachandran joins NeuroMetrix from Cardinal Health Inc. (NYSE:CAH), where he was general manager of its NeuroCare division, now part of CareFusion Corp. (NYSE:CFN) following an August 2009 spinoff. He also worked at Hewlett Packard (NYSE:HPQ) through 2007 as senior director for global alliances. In both jobs, Balachandran was credited with forming significant strategic partnerships with complementary entities and leading several new product launches.
NeuroMetrix is slated to debut Vantage later this year, the next-generation version of its NC-stat System. Like its predecessor, Vantage will measure nerve function but is designed for use by primary care doctors and other non-specialists and adds new productivity features.
NeuroMetrix also is positioning for a 2010 launch of Ascend, which will deliver precise doses of anesthetics, corticosteroids and other pain-management drugs into the tissue directly surrounding nerve fibers.
Balachandran’s hiring is the latest in a string of management changes that has seen NeuroMetrix recently add a new CFO and a new head of sales. As part of his initial compensation package, the company awarded Balachandran options to purchase up to 100,000 shares of stock. The options, priced at $1.77 a share, will vest over the next four years.
