The Board of the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CGT Catapult) has appointed Matthew Durdy as its Chief Executive Officer, effective from the beginning of April 2020. Durdy currently serves as Chief Business Officer of the organisation.
The announcement comes after a formal external and internal recruitment process that was initiated after the announcement last October that Keith Thompson, the founding CEO, would be retiring in the spring of 2020.
Keith Thompson commented: “As I leave to pursue a non-executive portfolio after eight years at the CGT Catapult, I am delighted to hand over the reins to Matthew. He is ideally suited for the next stage of growth.”CGT Catapult employs nearly 250 experts orientated around three key areas: manufacturing and supply chain; industrialisation and new technology development; and, global scale clinical adoption practices and product design.
Dr John Brown CBE, Chairman of the Board of the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult, commented: “We are delighted to appoint Matthew to the role. He has been a key member of the team that has delivered the success of the CGT Catapult to date and brings a previous history of managing growth in successful organisations. We had an outstanding field of applicants, but Matthew stood out because of his insight, passion, and vision for the future role of the CGT Catapult.”
The core strategy will continue, and the organisation is prepared for further expansion of the industry and successfully meeting the increasing demands for innovation to drive growth and productivity.
Matthew Durdy said: “The Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult is an extraordinary success story built by an amazing team of people. There is so much that we can do that will accelerate the growth of this industry which creates high-value jobs in the UK, and at the same time brings life-changing treatments to children, cancer sufferers, and many others with currently unmet acute and chronic healthcare needs. I am honoured by the appointment and looking forward to getting down to business with the team and our stakeholders.”