Overview and Leadership

Ms. Powell joined Tavanta Therapeutics in September 2019 and has 30 years of experience in the biopharmaceutical/ biotechnology industry. She served as Chief Commercial Officer at BioCryst, an emerging biotechnology company focused on commercializing innovative small molecules for rare diseases, and as Senior Vice President, North America, at CSL Behring. Throughout her 17-year career at CSL Behring, she assumed increasing responsibilities within the R&D, Business Development and Commercial functions of the organization. Ms. Powell has significant global experience serving as Vice President, Global Commercial Development and Head of Business Development & European Marketing, Head of Project and Portfolio Management and Head of Clinical Research. Ms. Powell also held positions within Glaxo Wellcome’s UK-based commercial strategy and clinical research organizations. Ms. Powell serves on the Board of Directors for Biora.

Dr. Maetzel’s career spans more than two decades of experience with biotechnology products and rare disease interventions across all stages of development and commercialization. He joins Tavanta from KalVista Pharmaceuticals, Inc. where he served as Senior Vice President, medical officer and contributed to the successful transition of KalVista’s lead asset into late-stage clinical development. Previously, Dr. Maetzel held senior medical affairs, development and market access positions with BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Cornerstone Biopharma (now Chiesi USA), and Amgen, overseeing manufacturing, regulatory affairs, drug safety, clinical development, and market access. In 2009, he co-founded Stratas Partners, a strategic pricing and market-access consultancy that was later sold to PricewaterhouseCoopers. Dr. Maetzel currently holds an academic appointment as adjunct professor at the Institute for Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto where he earned his PhD and MSc after completing his medical training in Germany and France.

Mr. Brayton brings over 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry including manufacturing, quality control, and quality assurance. Before joining Tavanta, he was the Senior Director of Quality Operations at Eagle Pharmaceuticals, where he contributed to the successful FDA approval and commercial launch of three products. Prior to that, he was at Novartis OTC overseeing the vendor compliance management of the America’s Region. His experience includes Quality Management Systems and CMC requirements for preclinical development, clinical development, and commercial operations. Mr. Brayton has a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the University of Victoria, British Columbia.  

Ms. Ferenczi has been with Tavanta Therapeutics since 2010. She began with Tavanta (then NanGenex) by leading the business development operations and was later promoted to Managing Director. Ms. Ferenczi now serves as General Manager, Europe. Prior to Tavanta, she worked at Genpact, a formerly GE owned company, that had established itself as one of Europe’s business services and technology solutions providers. Ms. Ferenczi has also served in a senior business development position at SOLVO Biotechnology (now a Charles River Company) and was responsible for the European sales operations of the company. Ms. Ferenczi graduated as a biomedical engineer from the University of Miami.

Dr. Duus joined Tavanta Therapeutics in January 2019 and brings over 15 years of clinical research & development experience in the biopharmaceutical industry, spanning early and late stage programs across multiple therapeutic areas. Prior to Tavanta, she served as Senior Director, Clinical Research & Strategy at Helsinn Therapeutics (U.S.), Inc. Over the 8 years at Helsinn, Dr. Duus led the clinical strategy for oncology-related compounds in development, contributed to global regulatory interactions, and supported medical affairs. She also held positions of increasing responsibility at Akros Pharma Inc and Avantix Laboratories. After receiving an undergraduate degree in biology from the University of Delaware, Dr. Duus earned her PhD in pharmacology and molecular sciences from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Mr. Szymanik has over 30 years of experience in accounting and finance within the pharmaceutical, consumer goods, confectionery, renewable energy, and chemical industries. Prior to Tavanta, Mr. Szymanik was Controller at Ocean Power Technologies, a renewable energy company focused on innovative and cost-effective low-carbon marine data, power, and consulting service solutions. Before Ocean Power Technologies, Mr. Szymanik was Controller at Arno Therapeutics, a clinical stage biotechnology company focused on developing innovative products for the treatment of cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Throughout his career, Mr. Szymanik has held positions of increasing responsibility in multinational as well as start-up, emerging companies. Mr. Szymanik holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Fairleigh Dickinson University. Mr. Szymanik also holds a Master’s Degree in Finance from Seton Hall University and is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of New Jersey.