Simon is a successful entrepreneur and former pharmaceutical executive with over 30 years of experience in drug discovery and development. Simon joined GSK in 1989 and held several senior leadership roles during his 21-year tenure with the company. Simon is an authority in research and development associated with the pain and neuroscience therapeutic areas.
In GSK, Simon established and led the Neurosciences Discovery Technology Group, spanning Psychiatry and Neurology target validation and biomarker discovery and also established the Department of Gene Expression and Protein Biochemistry in the UK. In his role as VP and Head of Pain, Epilepsy and Migraine Drug Discovery and Development, Simon delivered successful proof of concept studies in chronic pain, high quality clinical candidates and innovative novel targets. During his time at GSK, Simon was also involved in several late-stage clinical program teams.
In 2010 Simon led the GSK spin-off of Convergence Pharmaceuticals, as Chief Scientific Officer. Simon led all Research and Development activities for Convergence, which in a short time became widely recognized as one of the leading companies in the field of pain and ion channel drug discovery and development. In 2014, Convergence reported successful clinical proof of concept studies with outstanding efficacy and safety in both trigeminal neuralgia and pain associated with sciatica. In 2015, the company was sold to Biogen for $675 million. Simon become Vice President and Head of Pain Therapeutic Area at Biogen for three years. In 2018 Simon co-founded Bridge Valley Ventures, a life sciences ventures capital company, prior to transitioning to ICG Capital in 2021.