Originally published on Hunt Scanlon Media.
April 5, 2021 – The Bowdoin Group has placed two key leaders for Genome Medical in South San Francisco, CA. Russell Glass, CEO of on-demand mental health company Ginger, becomes an independent director for the company, and Brandon Poe, who comes to the business from Illumina, was named CFO. Genome Medical is accelerating the availability, efficiency, and effectiveness of genomic insights as a service.
“Congratulations to Brandon, Russ and the entire team at Genome Medical,” said Josh Gottlieb, managing director, digital health, for The Bowdoin Group, who served as one of the primary search leads. “Brandon brings extensive experience growing finance functions within the healthcare space as their new CFO, and Russ brings a wealth of knowledge around scaling businesses as a career CEO as the newest to their board of directors. With their collective expertise and clear passion for revolutionizing patient care, I’m confident they will both have a significant impact on Genome Medical’s future growth.”
“This added expertise will help propel our company forward as a leader in efficient, on-demand genomics care and as an innovator in the technology-driven delivery of genomic insights as a service,” said Lisa Alderson, CEO and co-founder of Genome Medical. Mr. Glass joins a board led by Genome Medical co-founder and chairman Randy Scott, with members and observers representing the company’s co-founders and its strategic investors. Mr. Glass, as CEO of Ginger, leads the company with his experience as a technology entrepreneur and a passion for digital mental health, strategy and building great cultures, said The Bowdoin Group. Prior to Ginger, he led products for the marketing solutions group at LinkedIn. He is the founder and former CEO and president of Bizo, a B2B marketing and data platform, which he sold to LinkedIn in 2014.
Valuable Experience
“It is clear to me as the CEO of a virtual mental health company that genomic medicine is going to be an increasingly critical component of personalized and cost-effective care over time,” said Mr. Glass. “I’m thrilled to be joining this pioneering team to help scale the speed and impact genomics can have on improving the health and healthcare outcomes of our society.”
“We are excited to have Russ join our board of directors,” said Mr. Scott. “Russ brings extensive experience in digital health and will be a great addition to our board in helping to drive our vision and business model as the world moves into a new era of genomic medicine.”
Mr. Poe brings more than 20 years of financial experience to Genome Medical across various industries, including life sciences, medical device, consumer electronics and travel. He was vice president of finance at Illumina, where he led multiple functions during his tenure, including FP&A, treasury, and strategic finance. Before that, he was CFO at Sotera Wireless, a medical device company. He received his bachelor’s degree from Bucknell University and his MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
Founded in 2016, Genome Medical is a digital health company that is transforming the delivery of genetic and genomics care through telehealth and digital infrastructure innovations. The company operates as an independent virtual medical practice, with on-demand genetic expertise, testing recommendations and patient navigation platforms that accelerate the delivery of genomic insights as a service. Genome Medical takes genetic information and transforms it into clinical action and follow-up care to improve health outcomes. The company supports partners in every stage of genetic health service implementation and delivery — from strategy to technology applications to direct patient care — to widen the reach and impact of precision medicine. Genome Medical was recently honored as “The Best Digital Health Company to Work For” by Rock Health, Fenwick & West and Goldman Sachs in their Top 50 in Digital Health awards.
Leadership and Strategic Roles
Founded in 1994, The Bowdoin Group specializes in leadership and strategic roles for a wide range of companies, from small firms building out their executive team to large firms sourcing talent for rapid market expansion as well as venture- and private equity-backed firms. With deep expertise in biopharma, digital health, fintech and financial services, and software, the firm specializes in the Greater Boston area with the ability to source talent and service companies globally.
Mr. Gottlieb has 12 years of executive search experience, working with executives and investors to help them build their executive and commercial teams. As managing director, digital health, he works with venture-backed, PE-backed, and high growth companies that are solving the biggest issues facing payer, provider, biopharma and employers with the goal of positively impacting patient outcomes. His primary responsibilities include partnering closely with clients and their boards, providing them guidance on talent acquisition strategy, team expansions, and executive and strategic searches.
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media