Cynthia Barber

About Cynthia Barber

I am a passionate leader who strives for excellence and operates with a sense of urgency. My approach to programs is rooted in my scientific and debate training: I want my teams to think innovatively and ask themselves the hard questions, before someone else does. I find success in applying this rigor across the board whether it is the precedent behind clinical study endpoints, the strategy for an overall clinical program, or even how we recruit talent into the department. I also strive to infuse the patient journey and voice into what we do, because they are why we do this work.My experience spans HCV, cystic fibrosis, alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, pain, type 1 diabetes, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and other neurology diseases. With 9 years experience on the Vertex pain program, I have been part of the NaV1.8 clinical program from the initial first-in-human with VX-150 to the current Ph3 program for VX-548. As I continue to grow my career, I seek out hard problems where I can mentor and grow teams of people dedicated to driving value every day.

Experience

1. Senior Director Portfolio & Program Management

   Vertex Pharmaceuticals

   Mar 2021 — Present

   As the portfolio and program manager for the pain Disease Strategy Team (DST), I work with the Disease Area Executive (DAE) and other members of the DST to design and propose portfolio strategy to the executive committee, set strategic priorities, align with functions on tactical plans, and ensure cross-functional collaboration and progress against our objectives. The pain program has multiple assets in different stages of development from early research to Phase 3, and hundreds of contributing employees across the enterprise.

Education

• University of Colorado Boulder

  BA, MCDBiology, Math, Biochemistry

  1999 — 2003

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  PhD, molecular biology

  2003 — 2009

• Quantic School of Business and Technology

  Executive Master of Business Administration

Skills

• Teaching
• Microscopy
• Regulatory Medical Writing
• Electron Microscopy
• Drosophila Genetics
• Genomics
• Image Processing
• Drosophila
• Lifesciences
• Protein Expression
• Genetics
• Science Journalism
• Serialem
• Cell Biology
• Public Speaking
• Pcr
• Science Writing
• Protein Purification
• Linux
• Molecular Cloning
• Science
• Biochemistry
• Immunohistochemistry
• Molecular Biology
• Fluorescence Microscopy
• Photoshop
• Life Sciences
• Laboratory
• Grant Writing
• Neuroscience
• Western Blotting
• Medical Writing
• Confocal Microscopy