Satej Bhandarkar, PhD, MBA

Satej brings over 25 years of cross-functional leadership experience in advancing innovative therapies for patients with rare and serious diseases. His expertise spans the entire drug development lifecycle—from lead selection through BLA/NDA submission—across biologics, cell therapies, peptides, and small molecules. Most recently, Satej served as Vice President, Head of Development Strategy and Operations at Kite Pharma (a Gilead Company), where he drove enterprise-level development strategies for marketed CAR-T products and next-generation cell therapy assets. Prior to Gilead, Satej was Senior Vice President, Head of Program Leadership, Strategy, and Corporate Development at Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, and played an important role the growth of the company from a start-up to a billion-dollar organization, spearheading corporate and portfolio strategy, leading rare genetic obesity program teams, and managing key alliances and licensing agreements. Earlier in his career, Satej held roles at Shire Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Oncology, and Emisphere Technologies, where he managed global development programs, executed complex due diligence for acquisitions and licensing deals, and oversaw operational excellence initiatives.

Dr. Bhandarkar earned his Executive MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management, a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Missouri–Kansas City, and a Bachelor of Pharmacy from the University of Pune, India.