ERT, a global technology-driven provider of clinical
services and customizable medial devices to biopharmaceutical and healthcare
organizations, announced today that its Board of Directors has appointed
Jeffrey S. Litwin, M.D. its new President and Chief Executive Officer and as a
member of the board.
Dr. Joel Morganroth, who had served as interim President
and Chief Executive Officer, commented that "after a thorough national
search by Heidrick and Struggles, our Board selected Dr. Litwin, an internal
candidate, as the most qualified person to lead ERT. Jeff brings to ERT knowledge of the Clinical
Research domain, that is our core business, and also experience in the adjacent
markets of Phase IV safety surveillance and healthcare in which ERT's assets
will be employed. All of our employees
look forward to continuing to work with Jeff to enhance ERT's operational
successes and strategy."
Dr. Litwin joined ERT in 2000 as Senior Vice President
and Chief Medical Officer and was subsequently promoted in December 2005 to
Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Litwin oversaw ERT's global cardiac
safety operations for seven years and was instrumental in implementing EXPERT,
ERT's digital operating system. During
this time period, ERT experienced tremendous growth with revenues increasing
more than three-fold. For the last four years, he has been responsible for
leading ERT's consulting business, assisting over 150 companies with the design
and evaluation of cardiac safety testing programs. Throughout his career at ERT, Dr. Litwin has
also been directly involved in supporting ERT's sales efforts.
In addition to his responsibilities at ERT, Dr. Litwin
serves on the DIA Annual Meeting planning committee, the Applied Clinical
Trials Editorial Board, and the Board of Directors of the Metrics Champion
Consortium. Dr. Litwin is a board-certified cardiologist and left his
cardiology practice to serve as Director, Medical Affairs, Wyeth-Ayerst
Laboratories from 1988 to 1990 where he had responsibility for medical
services, Phase IV research, and pharmacovigilance for all marketed cardiac
safety products. From 1990 to 1993, Dr.
Litwin served as Deputy Medical Director of Nutri/System Inc., and from 1993
until joining ERT, Dr. Litwin served as Executive Vice President and Chief
Operating Officer of Executive Health Group, the nation's leading provider of
executive physical examinations. In that
role, he built a worldwide network of over 1000 physician offices to provide
pre-employment physicals and high quality physical examinations to corporate
executives.
Dr. Litwin commented, "It has been a great pleasure
working with the employees, management team and Board at ERT for the past 11
years. This experience should allow for
a seamless transition from Dr. Morganroth's service as our interim President
and Chief Executive Officer. The
acquisition of Research Services has transformed ERT by expanding the services
and products we offer, and I look forward to leading the company in the
implementation of our strategic plan both within the clinical research market
as well as adjacent markets. I also
thank Dr. Morganroth for his dedicated service as our interim President and
Chief Executive Officer over these past few months."
The Board also elected Elam M. Hitchner, III to succeed
Dr. Morganroth as Chairman. Mr. Hitchner
has served since April 2010 as the lead independent director of the Board. Echoing Dr. Litwin's comments, Mr. Hitchner
stated, "We thank Dr. Morganroth not only for his service as our interim
President and Chief Executive Officer but also for having served as our
Chairman since 1999. Our Board believed
that, with the appointment of Dr. Litwin as our President and Chief Executive
Officer, this was an opportunity to enhance our corporate governance by
appointing a non-executive Chairman."
Dr. Morganroth commented, "I am excited to be able
to focus on my duties as Chief Scientific Officer as we continue to implement
our strategic plan of growing our core business while expanding beyond that
business into other areas. I will
continue to have input in the overall direction of our business in my role as a
member of the Board, and I look forward to the continued growth of ERT."
For further information visit
www.ert.com