Doug Locke is an organizational leader and the CEO of SSI Strategy, where he brings more than three decades of experience building high-performing teams, designing enterprise-level strategies, and driving transformation across the life sciences sector.  He focuses on delivering primary and supplemental delivery teams to achieve POC, IND-enabling, FIH and other longer ranging market-facing outcomes. Doug is focused on leveraging the SSI teaming model to achieve market outcomes for client partners of the firm. 

With a career spanning consulting, governance, and venture advisory roles, he specializes in developing market-facing partnerships and supporting medical and scientific leaders through key inflection points. Doug is committed to leaving every organization better than he found it and excels at navigating complex issues involving governance, funding, and growth. He is known for his collaborative leadership style and passion for helping others succeed.  

Johan Strömquist is President & Chief Innovation Officer at SSI Strategy and a published author on AI and risk management. With over 25 years of leadership experience across IT, life sciences, and consultancy, Johan specializes in guiding organizations through innovation, digitalization, and regulatory complexity. He co-founded Metalmind in 2023, focusing on AI productivity, and leads SSI Strategy’s innovation initiatives within biopharma. His expertise spans regulatory affairs, benefit–risk assessment, GDPR compliance for life sciences, and the application of generative AI in business. Johan thrives on managing change, fostering growth, and helping organizations achieve their goals.

He is the author of The Book on AI Risk Management – A Guide for Modern Executives.

Adam Schwartz is the President of SSI Strategy and a part of the initial team that started the firm.  He brings over two decades of leadership in both Management Consulting and Life Sciences.

As President of SSI, he focuses on supporting clients by ensuring the organization is fit for purpose to the dynamic needs of our biotech client array.  He has guided cross-functional teams in strategic planning, program management, and across a breadth of disciplines in the drug development lifecycle.  He has a focus on positioning scientific and medical functions at the core of innovation.

Adam has co-designed SSI’s unique organizational model to drive innovation and operational excellence for clients.  Prior to starting SSI, he was the initial employee at Acquis Consulting Group, a management consulting firm that provides a breadth of capabilities across industries and technologies.

Kim Kushner, MPH, is the Chief Business Officer at SSI Strategy, where she drives business growth and builds trusted partnerships with biotech and pharmaceutical leaders. With over 15 years of experience in healthcare and life sciences consulting, Kim specializes in helping executive teams design, scale, and transform organizations to bring innovative therapies to patients faster. At SSI, she oversees growth strategy, marketing, sales, and account management across the portfolio. Kim also serves as a Lecturer at Yale University and as Chair of the American Cancer Society’s Greater New York City Area Board. She is recognized for her ability to blend strategic insight with hands-on collaboration, guiding companies through critical inflection points from development to commercialization.

Victoria Benech is a seasoned life sciences consultant and trusted advisor to biotech and pharmaceutical leaders navigating strategic, operational, and organizational transformation.
As Chief Operating Officer at SSI Strategy, she drives the firm’s internal excellence agenda—designing and scaling systems and processes that enable consistent, high-quality delivery. She leads initiatives to enhance organizational effectiveness, strengthen operational performance, and foster a culture of accountability and execution excellence.  
Victoria’s leadership reflects a commitment to both client impact and organizational excellence, positioning SSI Strategy and its partners to thrive in an evolving and increasingly dynamic life sciences landscape. 

As the Chief Financial Officer of SSI Strategy, Craig leads the global treasury, finance, tax, and accounting functions. He supports SSI’s strategic growth and operational excellence initiatives across five international markets.
Through Craig’s over 25-year career, he has partnered with organizations to achieve key financial milestones, including IPOs and strategic exits, while advancing transformative initiatives such as M&A and digital transformation.
He has prior leadership experience in Healthcare and Consulting at IQVIA, Gartner and Thomson Reuters. He holds an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business as well as an undergraduate business degree from University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce.

Laurie Smaldone Alsup, MD, is an expert in global clinical development and regulatory strategy with a focus on accelerating innovative therapies to patients. A physician executive trained in Internal Medicine and Medical Oncology at the Yale School of Medicine, Laurie brings more than 30 years of global experience in pharmaceutical and biotechnology leadership including biotechnology board experience She advises companies on regulatory and clinical strategies to support product approvals in the U.S. ,Europe and globally with a successful track record across numerous disease indications, including oncology, infectious diseases, immunology, neurology and rare genetic disorders. Laurie previously held senior executive roles at Bristol-Myers Squibb PharmApprove, NDA Group and Phytomedics, guiding numerous products through development, approval, and commercialization worldwide. She currently sits on the board of two biotechnology companies.  

Amit Patel, PharmD, is a senior executive with over 25 years of experience in emerging biotech and pharmaceutical companies across pharmacovigilance, medical affairs, and strategic consulting. At SSI Strategy, he leads the firm’s Pharmacovigilance Services Hub, partnering with clients to design and optimize global safety systems. Before joining SSI Strategy, Amit served as President of Fiore Healthcare Advisors, a life sciences consultancy, where he led the company’s operations, growth strategy, and client delivery—driving its expansion and successful acquisition by SSI Strategy in 2021.

Dr. Hootan Khatami is a UCSF-trained endocrinologist and medical executive with nearly 25 years of combined academic and industry leadership in clinical and translational R&D, specializing in rare and metabolic disorders, incretin therapies and GLP1 metabolic products. He has directed programs from early discovery through global product launch, integrating medical strategy and execution. Experienced in orphan drug development, Advanced Therapies (including gene editing and gene therapy modalities), and corporate executive leadership as CEO and CMO, Dr. Khatami has successfully navigated complex clinical and regulatory pathways and led organizations in global launch readiness. His track record includes, managing multinational clinical programs, and forging strategic alliances that accelerate innovation and patient impact. 

Ramin Farhood is a senior medical executive with over two decades of global leadership in medical affairs, specializing in rare diseases and gene therapy. He has successfully built and scaled high-performing teams, directed strategic launches of transformative therapies, and aligned medical strategy with corporate goals. Known for his expertise in market access, HEOR, and RWE generation, Ramin has led cross-functional collaborations that secured reimbursement and accelerated innovation. His achievements include launching the first-ever gene therapy for SMA globally, managing substantial budgets, and establishing pioneering registries to support data-driven market readiness. 

Kate is passionate about applying innovative approaches to address the most complex challenges in life sciences. Since joining SSI in 2011, she has partnered with biotech leaders to build and scale their organizations, with a particular focus on strategies that accelerate or de-risk critical milestones. Her work is anchored in a singular priority: creating meaningful value—for client organizations, for investors, and ultimately for patients. In addition to her client work, Kate also drives several components of SSI’s own value creation strategy. She oversees the development and growth of SSI’s functional service offerings and leads the firm’s inorganic growth and M&A efforts.

Prior to SSI, Kate was part of Deloitte’s Strategy & Operations practice, where she delivered M&A integration, financial management, and human capital solutions.

Leah Damesek is Senior Vice President at SSI Strategy, where she leads high-impact client engagements across clinical, regulatory, and medical domains. Known for her ability to build trust with sponsors and executive teams, Leah specializes in guiding biotech organizations through inflection points: from IND-enabling strategy to governance design and milestone execution. Her leadership is rooted in cross-functional integration, coaching first-time CMOs, and shaping organizational structures that scale.

Leah’s approach is both strategic and relational: she listens deeply, aligns early, and delivers with precision. She has led governance and onboarding efforts for clinical-stage companies launching their first trials, and has helped design operating models that support sustainable growth and executive alignment. Prior to joining SSI, Leah was part of Huron Consulting Group’s Healthcare Practice. She holds a BA in Healthcare Policy with a minor in Financial Economics from Vanderbilt University.

Jacqui Levine is a seasoned management consultant with over 25 years of experience guiding Life Sciences organizations through complex, high-stakes transformations. As a Vice President at SSI Strategy, she partners with emerging biotechs and global pharmaceutical companies to deliver strategic and operational solutions across R&D, with deep expertise in Pharmacovigilance, Quality, Clinical Operations, Clinical Development, and Medical Affairs. Jacqui has led numerous high-impact initiatives, including the development and execution of launch-readiness roadmaps for Phase 3 biotechs preparing for commercialization, the design and management of enterprise inspection readiness programs, and the build-out of Medical Affairs capabilities to support growth and regulatory expectations. Known for her ability to align operational change with business strategy, Jacqui is a trusted advisor for mission-critical programs that demand both rigor and pragmatism.

Max Craig is a senior consulting leader with deep expertise in driving medical affairs transformation, launch planning, and strategic advisory for life sciences organizations. As Senior Vice President at SSI Strategy, he has partnered with executive leadership to deliver global medical affairs strategies, execute high-impact product launches, and enhance cross-functional performance. His work includes refreshing scientific communication plans, optimizing evidence generation, and leading organizational buildouts. Known for aligning strategy with measurable outcomes, Max has successfully guided top pharmaceutical and biotech clients through complex change initiatives, ensuring operational excellence and readiness for market success. 

Laurie Smaldone Alsup, MD, is an expert in global clinical development and regulatory strategy with a focus on accelerating innovative therapies to patients. A physician executive trained in Internal Medicine and Medical Oncology at the Yale School of Medicine, Laurie brings more than 30 years of global experience in pharmaceutical and biotechnology leadership including biotechnology board experience She advises companies on regulatory and clinical strategies to support product approvals in the U.S. ,Europe and globally with a successful track record across numerous disease indications, including oncology, infectious diseases, immunology, neurology and rare genetic disorders. Laurie previously held senior executive roles at Bristol-Myers Squibb PharmApprove, NDA Group and Phytomedics, guiding numerous products through development, approval, and commercialization worldwide. She currently sits on the board of two biotechnology companies. 

Kimberley Forbes-McKean, PhD is a highly accomplished biotech and pharmaceutical executive with over 35 years of experience in global drug, device and drug-device combination product development. She currently serves as Senior Vice President, Regulatory & Strategy as part of the Regulatory Leadership Team at SSI Strategy. Throughout her career, she has combined deep scientific expertise with strong commercial acumen, successfully converting business units into profitable enterprises. Her leadership spans all phases of development for small molecules, biologics, and combination products, with regulatory successes in oncology, dermatology, inflammatory, auto-immune and rare diseases. Known for building operational infrastructure and high-performing R&D teams, Kim combines strategic vision with executional excellence to deliver transformative healthcare solutions aligned with client and project goals. 

Trevor Mill is a seasoned c-suite biotech leader specializing in global drug development and regulatory strategy. With extensive experience (30 years plus) across pharma, biotech, and start-up environments, he has guided many products from early research, development, through to regulatory approval in multiple geographies. Trevor has led large, cross-functional teams, driving expedited approvals in rare diseases, neuroscience, psychiatry, and many more. Known for shaping regulatory pathways in innovative therapeutic areas and differing drug modalities, he has successfully navigated key development milestones, pivotal agency engagements and built high-performing R&D organizations which have consistently delivered complex projects in alignment with strategic goals and scientific excellence.

Leah Damesek is Senior Vice President at SSI Strategy, where she leads high-impact client engagements across clinical, regulatory, and medical domains. Known for her ability to build trust with sponsors and executive teams, Leah specializes in guiding biotech organizations through inflection points: from IND-enabling strategy to governance design and milestone execution. Her leadership is rooted in cross-functional integration, coaching first-time CMOs, and shaping organizational structures that scale.

Leah’s approach is both strategic and relational: she listens deeply, aligns early, and delivers with precision. She has led governance and onboarding efforts for clinical-stage companies launching their first trials, and has helped design operating models that support sustainable growth and executive alignment. Prior to joining SSI, Leah was part of Huron Consulting Group’s Healthcare Practice. She holds a BA in Healthcare Policy with a minor in Financial Economics from Vanderbilt University.

Björn Carlsson is a seasoned regulatory affairs and clinical immunology expert with over 17 years in pharmaceutical development and regulatory strategy. As Vice President, Regulatory Science, he leverages 12 years at the Swedish Medicines Agency, including a decade as non-clinical assessor and two years leading a multidisciplinary clinical efficacy-safety group. In addition, he was the Swedish alternative delegate in the in the committee for advanced therapies (CAT) at the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for 9 years.  His expertise spans non-clinical development, Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMPs), and strategic regulatory planning, with a proven track record in scientific advice and complex authorisation procedures. Björn’s leadership in ATMP certification and cross-functional collaboration positions him as a key contributor to projects requiring deep regulatory insight and scientific rigor. 

Hanne Brokopp is a seasoned regulatory affairs leader with over 26 years in the pharmaceutical industry, specialising in European regulatory strategy for global development programs. As a VP, she delivers strategic guidance on complex submissions including pre-submission activities, in-licensing assessments, and lifecycle management. Her track record includes leading cross-functional teams, securing multiple EU marketing authorisations, and engaging effectively with EMA and national competent authorities. Skilled in small molecules, biologicals, vaccines, and biosimilars, Hanne brings proven expertise in navigating accelerated pathways, paediatric programs, and high-stakes regulatory interactions aligned with client objectives.