New Zealand’s largest licensed medicinal cannabis company, Helius Therapeutics, has appointed Mark Woods to its executive team as Chief Financial Officer.
He joins Helius after 11 years in financial and commercial leadership roles at global dairy nutrition company, Fonterra. Most recently he was General Manager – Global Consumer & Foodservice, and previously acted as the dairy giant’s Commercial Director for the division.
Mr Woods brings over 20 years of consumer goods and business-to-business experience in New Zealand, Australia, Asia, China, Africa and Latin America – executing global strategies and delivering major projects.
Prior to Fonterra, he held financial planning, business analyst, and management positions in the UK and Australia. Mr Woods is a Chartered Member of the Institute of Directors (New Zealand) and has a Bachelor of Business from Monash University in Melbourne.
“We’re thrilled to have Mark join our fast-growing team. He complements our strong performance-oriented culture, and his experience in vertically-integrated, advanced manufacturing environments makes him the ideal choice to lead our financial strategy," says Mr Manning.
As Chief Financial Officer of Helius, Mr Woods will contribute to the organisation-wide growth strategy and commercial performance, providing the innovative biotechnology business with strong financial stewardship and effective strategic oversight.
“I'm looking forward to working with Mark on the execution of our strategy, maintaining our market-leading position, and investing for growth. Mark brings extensive experience in the international markets, leading commercial teams and scaling-up innovative export businesses. He’s a fantastic addition to Helius' executive team,” says Mr Manning.
Earlier this year, Helius announced it has raised a further $20m from private investors, with the Kiwi-owned company achieving a market capitalisation of $105m. Well-placed to develop a new generation of novel medicinal cannabis products, the company is nearing completion of its state-of-the-art, integrated medicines manufacturing facility in Auckland.
“Helius has pulled together world-class talent and has a clear vision. We’re in a strong position to invest heavily to improve the quality of life for patients here and in global markets,” says Mr Manning.
Helius is also the foundation sponsor of New Zealand’s first medicinal cannabis conference, MedCan 2020, coming up on the 9th and 10th of November at Auckland’s Aotea Centre.