the Nobias leadership team
Patrick Dougherty
Chief Executive Officer
Patrick Dougherty is a life sciences executive with more than 20 years of experience at the intersection of science and business across a range of roles, including corporate/business strategy, business operations, program management/implementation, and business development.
Before joining Nobias, Mr. Dougherty established Beech Street Advisors, LLC, a biotech advisory practice supporting early-stage therapeutic companies by providing hands-on, functional leadership in business strategy, business development, and executive and operations. He served as SVP of Strategy, Planning, and Operations for WindMIL Therapeutics, a private, venture-backed oncology cell therapy company. During his 10-year tenure at GSK, Mr. Dougherty ascended into positions of seniority, including Chief of Staff to the SVP R&D Pipeline. He was an engagement manager at L.E.K. Consulting and held roles in business development at Endo Pharmaceuticals and Laboratorios Bagó.
Mr. Dougherty holds a BS in Chemistry from Villanova University, a MSc in Technology Management from the University of Manchester, and MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Ryan McMillian
Consulting Chief Financial Officer
Ryan McMillian is a seasoned CFO and strategic advisor with over $250 million in fundraising experience for biotech ventures. He has expertise in financial planning, capital allocation, and business development, with a track record of driving growth in dynamic environments.
Mr. McMillian was previously the Head of U.S. Finance for Alexion Pharmaceuticals providing financial leadership, strategy, and planning to the region, as well as leading the launch of three orphan drug launches and overseeing U.S. pricing strategy and reporting. Prior to joining Alexion, he spent several years in corporate finance and banking at GE Capital.
Mr. McMillian holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering and Material Science from Oklahoma State University, and an MBA in Economics from Northeastern University.
Hakon Hakonarson
Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Advisor
Hakon Hakonarson, M.D., Ph.D., has more than 30 years of experience in biotech and academic research, with an extensive track record in genomics and translational medicine. He has published more than 1000 peer-reviewed manuscripts, including over 50 in Nature and Nature Genetics combined. Dr. Hakonarson co-founded Nobias with Dr. Brian Halak of Domain Associates in 2020.
In his role as Chief Scientific Advisor, Dr. Hakonarson guides research and development efforts at Nobias, based on his extensive knowledge of the complexities of large-scale genomic research and drug development for precision therapies. He also provides advice across Nobias’ clinical research activity in pediatric rare diseases.
In addition to advising Nobias, Dr. Hakonarson founded and continues to serve as director of the Center for Applied Genomics (CAG) at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). The CAG Biobank has become one of the world’s largest and most diverse pediatric biorepositories, hosting 600,000 samples, including more than 130,000 CHOP patients and family members. He also serves as the Endowed Chair in Genomics Research and as Professor of Pediatrics at The University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine.
Prior to founding CAG, Dr. Hakonarson helped co-create the Icelandic biobank at deCODE genetics, serving as Head of Inflammatory and Pharmacogenomics Research and Vice President of Clinical Sciences at deCODE, and as Chief Scientific Officer for its subsidiary, enCODE.
Dr. Hakonarson earned his medical degree and PhD from the University of Iceland, and completed a pediatrics residency at the University of Connecticut and a pediatric pulmonology fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania.
