Roger Bone (J&J Pharma)


... Bruce E. Maryanoff should be put in charge.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_E._Maryanoff
Bruce knows how to get drugs to market.

I don't know about that, i read the article and the guy's got a lot of experience in drug discovery, doesn't mention anything about development. My opinion is that R&D leaders need to have an intimate understanding of science and disease, but at the same time they need to be outstanding leaders and managers. Your boy Maryanoff may have the science down pat, but what about the leadership and management ability? I mean, for crying out loud, the guys not even on any of the relevant leadership teams. It'd be like suggesting that LeBron James coach the team because he's such a great player. It'd likely fail since the skill sets are completely different.
 




I worked with Roger before 3-D (at Merck), so this crap about him having no pharma "experience" is simply uninformed. From our interaction, way back then, Roger is a very thoughtful and strategic scientist, and is absolutely committed to drug discovery and development. He certainly understands office politics, but isn't a real "player", except when absolutely necessary. And the good Lord knows that there were ample opportunities to get ahead at Merck by being a good "player" back then.

I believe that he's a good addition to J&J SrMgmt, and the griping on here is just that: griping.
 


I worked with Roger before 3-D (at Merck), so this crap about him having no pharma "experience" is simply uninformed. From our interaction, way back then, Roger is a very thoughtful and strategic scientist, and is absolutely committed to drug discovery and development. He certainly understands office politics, but isn't a real "player", except when absolutely necessary. And the good Lord knows that there were ample opportunities to get ahead at Merck by being a good "player" back then.

I believe that he's a good addition to J&J SrMgmt, and the griping on here is just that: griping.

Great self-assessment Rodger....but, we all know that you are real f-up.
Keep posting though.
 






Hey, I love Cafepharma. I'll take the 50% complaining and 45% rumor to get the 5% truth. I gotta tell you though, this thread just seems to be malicious bashing. I'm a current J&J pharm employee and will be the first to say that the overall R&D org hasn't produced much (with the exception of Centocor R&D), but I don't get all this bashing of R. Bone. Seems like something personal from 1 or 2 people. Hey guys, why don't you prank call his house a few times and get it out of your system?
 


I was surprised to read the thread on Roger and also chalked it up to a personal vendetta. But the most recent allegations are way too bizarre to let go unchallenged. Now thete's no doubt there's no truth to the postings. He doesn't even come close to unethical. Rather than throw eggs at his house you might consider some therapy.
 


Hey, I love Cafepharma. I'll take the 50% complaining and 45% rumor to get the 5% truth. I gotta tell you though, this thread just seems to be malicious bashing. I'm a current J&J pharm employee and will be the first to say that the overall R&D org hasn't produced much (with the exception of Centocor R&D), but I don't get all this bashing of R. Bone. Seems like something personal from 1 or 2 people. Hey guys, why don't you prank call his house a few times and get it out of your system?


I can understand how people can get frustrated with Roger promoting his 3-dp buddies.
 




Yes, and his 3-DP buddies are not being the brightest to say the least.


Sounds right.
I met few times with Barry Springer.
He is Roger's buddy and he made VP.
He is quite nice guy, but not very knowledgeable or accomplished.
In a competitive culture, like one in Merck, he would not even make associate.
 








Roger Bone was the head of the FDA Endocrine/Metabolic Advisory Committee in the 1990's. He knows ALL the players in the agency. He doesn't need R&D experience. He knows how to push the right buttons. He will grease the tracks to approval for anything you have coming up. I'm not J&J, but I'm jealous. This is HUGE, believwe me.
 


He doesn't need R&D experience. He knows how to push the right buttons.

Believe me, the manager of an R&D organisation needs R&D experience. It is not a trivial task to run an effective R&D effort: The trend in return on investment in pharmaceutical research should be a sufficient indication that it is in fact exceptionally difficult. Spending has increased ten-fold in the last 20 years and, to put an optimistic interpretation on it, there has been no increase in productivity. It is widely accepted that "Big Pharma" is EXTREMELY bad at managing its R&D efforts.

R&D is very different from other forms of industry activity and needs a very specific management style and organization. If RB doesn't understand R&D, he'll probably destroy the productivity of the unit in no time, assuming that it still has any. It takes ten years to build a good research unit, and a mere ten days to destroy it.

Never mind then how good his relations with the FDA are; there will be nothing to submit.
 


Number 36, you're probably from the UK from the way you spell "organisation" and the fact that unlike your US counterparts, you actually know how to write proper English and how to make a coherent argument. Your point on R&D experience is well taken, but unlike UK Pharma/Government relations, which I would term as formal, maybe even rigid, in the US the preferred terms are informal and even incestuous. I'm a former R&D Governemt Affairs Director, complete with a Doctorate, and my main job used to be prowling the corridors of the FDA, getting into reviewers' office and getting inside their thinking about any pending NDA's. I was not alone. Every day I ran into my counterparts from other Big Pharma cos. They were ALL represented. I guess you might call us lobbyists with science degrees, but I'm not shy about saying that our roles were critical in greasing the tracks for approval. We all had offices across from the FDA bldg, in Rockville, MD and we were all on first name basis with agency officials. No problem picking up the phone any time. You have only "formal" lines of communication with EMEA and other bodies. We have our functionaries that do the same thing. But the real work is done behind the scenes in those long corridors of the FDA building.

This is where Dr Bone will earn his money, not in some corner office constructing 10-year clinical development plans.
 


Number 36, you're probably from the UK from the way you spell "organisation"

No, although I am from Europe. Oxford English is what I was taught in school. But as US English is the J&J standard, I have become heavily dependent on my spell checker...

You have only "formal" lines of communication with EMEA and other bodies. We have our functionaries that do the same thing. But the real work is done behind the scenes in those long corridors of the FDA building.

You seem to assume that the J&J OpCos in Europe deal primarily with EMEA: Not so. We too tend to seek FDA approval first, and we have our own US offices to support that process, although the development is directed from here. Presumably these offices come complete with people who maintain the informal communication lines.

This is where Dr Bone will earn his money, not in some corner office constructing 10-year clinical development plans.

Maybe. But I would expect that most of the negotiations with the FDA will now be handled by Johan VH's GDO. Probably some people in GDO will have a reporting line to RB as well, because GDO appears to be replete with people who have dual full reporting lines.

Roger Bone should contribute by making his organization turn out good new drugs and a solid case to support them: There is real reason to worry if he doesn't have R&D experience. (Not that having R&D experience is a guarantee of skills or success.) I've seen "over here" what the impact of mismanagement can be, and it is heartbreaking to see people who were once dedicated, enthusiastic and energetic researchers, and now dispiritedly shuffle around like zombies.
 


I know Roger and he is a stiff. He couldn't cut it at Merck to he went to 3DP, they cratered and JNJ bought them for their X-ray equipment. The only reason he made it into management at Spring House is that Dennis Hlasta was such a weak VP & Poon wanted to give someone else a try at running Spring House. Since there were no takers and 3DP management was just sitting there he got a shot. Then Roger's boss Gary Neil, MD took a bullet since he didn't know shit about R&D. A pure success story.
 


R&D experience may be overrated. Sheri MC did work her way up the company ladder all the way from lab technician, and presumably that has given her at least some R&D experience, but the decisions emanating from her office would have people ROFL if they weren't so damaging.
 



Write your reply...