Flagship Pioneering Announces Appointment of Paul Parker as Managing Partner, Leading Capital Solutions

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Oct 09, 2024, 07:00 ET

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Flagship Pioneering, the bioplatform innovation company, today announced that Paul Parker has joined as Managing Partner, Capital Solutions and Value Realization. In this role, Parker will lead all capital solutions efforts at Flagship, driving portfolio value realization, fundraising activities, and building and managing Flagship's relationships with Limited Partners as well as strategic and financial investors. He will also play a key role on Flagship's senior leadership team, helping drive value, impact, and effectiveness across the organization.

Parker brings over 35 years of experience in banking, pharma and biotech, as well as in mergers and acquisitions (M&A), corporate strategy and organizational leadership. He has worked across multiple sectors and geographies, built and managed several multi-billion-dollar businesses, and led teams of several thousand employees. He previously served as Co-Chairman of the Global M&A Group for Goldman Sachs & Co., Chairman and Head of Global M&A and Co-Head of Corporate Finance at Barclays Group Plc, and Chairman and Head of Global M&A at Lehman Brothers.

Parker becomes Flagship's third Managing Partner, alongside Doug Cole and Stephen Berenson, as the company enters its next phase of growth and development following the raise of its latest capital pool of $3.6B in July of this year. Most recently, he served as a Corporate Officer and held the role of Senior Vice President, Strategy and Corporate Development at Thermo Fisher Scientific which comprised a number of enterprise-level operating roles, including being a member of the leadership team, as well as having responsibility for Corporate Strategy, Corporate Development, Strategic Capital, Integration Management, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Government Relations.

"At Flagship, we found, build and create companies for two reasons: to better the health of people and the planet, and to grow and realize value for investors and partners," said Noubar Afeyan, Founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering. "Paul's extensive acumen with banking and investing across both biotech and pharma, alongside his track record of corporate leadership, will be a huge advantage to us in realizing those goals."

"I've had the privilege of working with Noubar and other members of the Flagship leadership team in various roles over the years, and I am consistently impressed by Flagship's distinctive approach to company and bioplatform creation," said Paul Parker. "I look forward to bringing my experience in helping businesses build and realize value to Flagship where, with my colleagues, we can enable our companies to improve health and sustainability and deliver exceptional results for our investors."

About Paul Parker

Paul Parker is an experienced executive and over his career he has worked across multiple sectors and geographies, built and managed several multi-billion-dollar businesses, and led teams of several thousand employees. He brings over 35 years of experience in the life sciences industry in both banking, including pharma and biotech, as well as in mergers and acquisitions (M&A), corporate strategy and organizational leadership.

Prior to joining Flagship, Parker was a Corporate Officer, member of the Company Leadership Team, and served as Senior Vice President, Strategy and Corporate Development for Thermo Fisher Scientific. In this capacity he held a number of enterprise-level operating roles, including having responsibility for Corporate Strategy, Corporate Development, Strategic Capital, Integration Management, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Government Relations. He previously served as Co-Chairman of the Global Mergers and Acquisitions Group for Goldman Sachs & Co. and served on the firm's Partnership Committee and the Investment Banking Senior Leadership Council. Prior to Goldman Sachs, Parker held senior positions at Barclays Group Plc where he served as Chairman and Head of Global M&A, subsequently adding responsibilities as Co-Head of Corporate Finance. He was previously an investment banker at Lehman Brothers in several senior leadership positions, ultimately serving as Chairman and Head of Global M&A. Earlier in his career, Parker held positions at other financial institutions, including J.P. Morgan & Co.

Parker is currently a Board member of the Clorox Company, where he has served for the past four years.

He earned an MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School and a bachelor's degree in international studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

For more, watch "Three Questions with Paul Parker" to hear about his journey from banking to biotech and what drew him to Flagship.

About Flagship Pioneering

Flagship Pioneering invents and builds bioplatform companies, each with the potential for multiple products that transform human health or sustainability. Since its launch in 2000, Flagship has originated and fostered more than 100 scientific ventures, resulting in more than $75 billion in aggregate value. Flagship is operating with $14 billion of assets under management as of its latest capital raise, announced in July 2024. The current Flagship ecosystem comprises 43 companies, including Foghorn Therapeutics (NASDAQ: FHTX), Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA), Omega Therapeutics (NASDAQ: OMGA), Sana Biotechnology (NASDAQ: SANA), Generate Biomedicines, Inari, Indigo Agriculture, and Tessera Therapeutics.