Leadership

	Spiro Spireas, Ph.D., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
	Dr. Spiro Spireas is the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Sigmapharm Laboratories, which he founded on March 1, 2005. His extensive academic and industrial background is an invaluable company asset. Dr. Spireas is the inventor and author of more than 70 international and domestic patents and 200 scientific papers, books, and other publications in the fields of industrial pharmacy, biopharmaceutics, pharmacokinetics, pharmaceutical technology and analytical chemistry. He holds Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Pharmaceutics and Industrial Pharmacy from St. John’s University, and a B.S. degree in Pharmacy from the Hellenic National University of Athens, Greece. Prior to forming Sigmapharm Laboratories, Dr. Spireas served for about 6 years as the Vice President of Research and Development for URL Pharma, Inc. (formerly URL/Mutual), where he developed various unique generic products including Felodipine extended release tablets which remained for about 4 years the only marketed generic equivalent to Astra Zeneca’s Plendil ER tablets. Prior to this, Dr. Spireas was for about 7 years a Professor of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Technology at the Arnold & Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy of Long Island University, where he taught several graduate and undergraduate courses of pharmaceutical sciences, consulted for the pharmaceutical and nutritional industries and conducted extensive research producing more than 20 Ph.D. and M.S. dissertations. In fact, several of his graduate students continue to work with Dr. Spireas as key Sigmapharm personnel.
	Rakesh Grover, Ph.D., President and Chief Operating Officer
	Dr. Rakesh Grover is the President and Chief Operating Officer of Sigmapharm Laboratories, where he oversees the day-to-day functions of the company. His rich academic and industrial experience along with his scientific, technical, regulatory and administrative knowledge, are invaluable company assets. Dr. Grover has more than 50 publications in various scientific journals and meetings and has led the development of several unique products using proprietary pharmaceutical technologies. Prior to joining Sigmapharm Laboratories in 2005, Dr. Grover served as the Director of Research and Development for Perrigo Pharmaceutical Company, Ltd, and for URL Pharma, Inc. (formerly URL/Mutual). Dr. Grover also worked as a Formulation Scientist at Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd (formerly Barr Laboratories, Inc.). Dr. Grover received his Ph.D. degree in Pharmaceutics from the Arnold & Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy of Long Island University, where he became the first student of the college to obtain a doctorate degree in 1998. In fact, Dr. Grover’s major advisor at the college was Dr. Spireas, Sigmapharm’s current Chairman and CEO. Dr. Grover also holds a B.S. degree in Pharmacy from Gulbarga University, India.
	Ram K. Kallur, M.Sc., Vice President Operations
	Ram K. Kallur is the Vice President of Operations of Sigmapharm Laboratories, where he is in charge of the company’s commercial manufacturing and other related operations. His more than 12 years of formulation and analytical experience along with his scientific, technical, manufacturing and regulatory compliance expertise are invaluable company assets. Prior to joining the company in 2006, Mr. Kallur worked as a Formulation Scientist for Pfizer Inc. and for URL Pharma, Inc. (formerly URL/Mutual), and as a Research Scientist for CorePharma Laboratories, LLC. Mr. Kallur received in 1999 his Master of Science degree in Industrial Pharmacy from the Arnold & Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy of Long Island University, under the guidance and supervision of Dr. Spireas. He also holds a B.S. in Pharmacy from Mangalore University, India.
	Lai Ogunbiyi, Pharm.D., Vice President Quality Assurance
	Dr. Lai Ogunbiyi is the Vice President of Quality Assurance of Sigmapharm Laboratories, which he joined in 2005. Dr. Ogunbiyi graduated from the University of California, San Francisco. His career spans a broad scope of disciplines in the pharmaceutical industry starting with Research and Development at Bausch and Lomb to Research Management (Eastman Kodak/Sterling Winthrop) to Business Development (Elan Pharmaceuticals and URL Pharma). His inventions at Bausch and Lomb (seven patents) have formed the backbone of the success of the Renu product line over the years. He was an integral part of several business deals that were executed during his tenure at Elan/Nanosystems. Dr. Ogunbiyi has more than 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry.
	Ishari Piya, M.Sc., Vice President Product Development
	Ishari Piya is the Vice President of Product Development of Sigmapharm Laboratories, where she is in charge of new product development, scale-up, manufacturing of clinical supplies, and stability and bioequivalence testing. Her more than 11 years of formulation experience along with her scientific and technical expertise, are invaluable company assets. Prior to joining the company in 2006, Ms. Piya worked as a Manager of Product Development for Par Pharmaceutical Companies, Inc. (formerly Kali Laboratories) and for URL Pharma, Inc. (formerly URL/Mutual). Ms. Piya received in 1999 her Master of Science degree in Industrial Pharmacy from the Arnold & Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy of Long Island University, under the guidance and supervision of Dr. Spireas. She also holds a B.S. in Pharmacy from University of Sind, Pakistan.
	Sunil Sagi, M.Sc., Vice President Technology Development
	Sunil Sagi is the Vice President of Technology Development of Sigmapharm Laboratories, where he is in charge of developing unique generic and branded products using established and newly discovered proprietary technologies. His more than 10 years of formulation experience along with his scientific and technical expertise, are invaluable company assets. Prior to joining the company in 2006, Mr. Sagi worked for URL Pharma, Inc. (formerly URL/Mutual) as the Manager of Technology Development, R&D. Mr. Sagi received in 1998 his Master of Science degree in Industrial Pharmacy from the Arnold & Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy of Long Island University, under the guidance and supervision of Dr. Spireas. He also holds a B.S. in Pharmacy from Mangalore University, India.
	Lokanath Lenka, M.Tech., Vice President Analytical Chemistry
	Lokanath Lenka is the Vice President of Analytical Chemistry of Sigmapharm Laboratories, where he is in charge of the company’s Analytical Operations. His more than 15 years of analytical experience along with his scientific, technical, regulatory and compliance expertise are invaluable company assets. Prior to joining the company in 2008, Mr. Lenka served at Perrigo Company from 2000 to 2008 in positions of increasing responsibility, most recently holding the position of Supervisor of Analytical R&D, at Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories from 1998 to 2000 and at Ranbaxy from 1996-1998. Mr. Lenka holds a M.Tech. degree in Analytical Chemistry from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), New Delhi, India. He also holds a M.S. and B.S. degree in chemistry.