Welcome to Partnology’s Biotech Leader Spotlight Series, where we highlight the remarkable accomplishments and visionary leadership of biotech industry pioneers. This series is about showcasing the groundbreaking strides made by exceptional leaders who have transformed scientific possibilities into tangible realities. Through insightful interviews, we invite you to join us in following the inspiring journeys of these executives who continue to shape the landscape of the biotech industry. This week we are recognizing:
Frank Watanabe has been the President of Arcutis Biotherapeutics since 2016, and Chief Executive Officer since 2017. Prior to joining Arcutis, he was Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of Kanan Therapeutics, a cardiovascular drug development company, and before that, was vice president of strategy and corporate development at Kythera Biopharmaceuticals. Watanabe was an executive at Amgen, Inc. from 2005 to 2013, where he was involved in the development of Repatha® for hyperlipidemia and Aimovig® for migraine, and worked on the US marketing of Enbrel® in both dermatology and rheumatology. Previously, he was an executive with Eli Lilly and Company, and an official in the US government. He was also a commissioned officer in the US Navy Reserves for 25 years. He formerly served on the board of Amunix Pharmaceuticals. He earned his MA in national security studies, and his BA in international relations, both at Georgetown University.
Walk me through your career, noting some of the most pivotal moments or decisions throughout:
I started my career with Eli Lilly and Company in 1996. I had been with the federal government before that and decided to leave and join Eli Lilly. I started a fairly traditional commercial trajectory. I worked in marketing for a while, then moved into sales as a sales rep, became a sales manager, and worked in sales operations. Then I had a wonderful opportunity with Eli Lilly to go overseas and be a country manager of two countries in Europe. That was one of the pivotal points in my career, and probably why I’m sitting where I am today.
While I was in Europe, I ended up leaving Eli Lilly and joining Amgen. I spent two years at Amgen doing international expansion. I helped open Amgen’s operations in the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Latin America. I really enjoyed that, but the travel was killing me. So I moved back to the States and to Amgen’s global headquarters in California. I spent a couple of years in U.S. marketing, then moved into product development. I had the opportunity to work on developing what became two FDA-approved products: Aimovig for migraine and Repatha for cardiovascular disease. These were fantastic opportunities and pivotal moments in my career because it was a very different part of the value chain. I had always been involved in commercialization, but this new role allowed me to move into the development side, all the way back into preclinical development, and learned how drugs get developed and approved versus sold.
I left Amgen in 2013 to go into the startup world. I joined a company called Kythera, which had a drug called Kybella for double chin. We were acquired by Allergan in 2015, and they laid off the senior management team. So I started another biotech company with a couple of former Amgen colleagues in the cardiovascular space. Unfortunately, that drug didn’t work, so the company went under. In 2016, I joined Arcutis and have been with the company for eight years. I’ve taken it from three people and $150,000 in the bank to about 350 people, a little over a billion dollars in market cap, and about $360 million in the bank. It’s been an amazing journey and transformation for Arcutis. Me joining Arcutis, and my ability to do my job, really grew out of all those prior experiences.
Tell me more about Arcutis Biotherapeutics – what are you currently working on?
We’re an immunology company focused on dermatological diseases. We currently have three FDA-approved products for various inflammatory skin diseases. We have a fourth indication in front of the FDA, and we expect a decision around the middle of next year. We also have some earlier-stage pipeline programs for other diseases, all focused on dermatology.
I noticed you have your own investment LLC – could you tell me more about that?
Yes, my father was a biotech executive who founded a company that was eventually acquired by Roche for a substantial amount. Unfortunately, he passed away shortly before the transaction was completed, and our family inherited his share of the proceeds. We’ve been using that to invest in various areas, including direct investments in smaller companies, venture capital, private equity, and more recently, real estate development. It’s a side venture for me, but one I’m very involved in.
Most of our biotech investments are through Frazier Healthcare, one of the larger healthcare venture capital funds. Interestingly, Frazier was an early investor in my father’s company, and after we and they saw a great return on that investment, we reinvested some of our proceeds with them. Frazier also founded Arcutis, which is how I initially got recruited—I already had a relationship with them as a limited partner.
How did you get involved with the Biotechnology Innovation Organization?
BIO is the industry trade association for biotech, encompassing healthcare, agriculture, and the environment. I was recruited to the board of directors about three years ago by a former colleague from Lilly. Arcutis had been a member for years, and I’ve steadily increased my involvement since joining. For smaller companies like Arcutis, BIO is critical. They do lobbying on behalf of the industry, which is something smaller companies can’t afford.
BIO fights to ensure Congress, the federal government and the states make the right decisions for biotech. For example, we’re working on fixing issues with the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), particularly as it’s been damaging to biotech, and tackling capital formation challenges. There’s growing recognition of biotechnology’s importance to U.S. national security, especially after COVID, and BIO is at the forefront of these efforts.
It’s important to ensure patients can access the drugs we develop. There needs to be meaningful reform in drug reimbursement to make treatments available to those who need them. I encourage everyone to push their elected officials to scrutinize the middlemen in the system, who create barriers for patient access.
Could you expand on the programs you’ve worked on, maybe highlighting those you are most proud of or passionate about?
The two that stand out before Arcutis are Zyprexa and Repatha. I was involved in the development of Zyprexa at Eli Lilly, one of the first atypical antipsychotics. Seeing the impact it had on people with schizophrenia was life-changing, not just for them but for me as well. It made me stay in the pharmaceutical industry for 30 years. The second is Repatha. Cardiovascular disease is still the leading cause of death in the U.S., and while statins are great, there’s more to be done. Repatha targets PCSK9 and significantly impacts cardiovascular health. My colleagues and I took that program from preclinical all the way to FDA approval, and it’s something I’m very proud of.
At Arcutis, our Zoryve family of products, approved for plaque psoriasis, seborrheic dermatitis, and atopic dermatitis, stands out. Dermatologists typically rely on topical steroids, which are effective but have limitations for chronic use. Zoryve offers a safer, more effective alternative. It’s gratifying to hear how it impacts patients’ lives and how it can change the practice of dermatology.
What do you see as the most promising technologies in biotech over the next 5-10 years?
There’s a lot happening. I think we’re seeing the emergence of powerful gene therapies, especially for diseases where that’s the only option. RNA-based therapies, as we saw during COVID, are also expanding rapidly. And while it’s early days, AI’s impact on drug discovery will be profound. AI will help us discover drugs more quickly, cost-effectively, and hopefully, more successfully.
With the experience and insights you’ve gained, what advice would you give to others aspiring to become a biotech leader?
One of my mentors, Alan Clark from Lilly, shared a piece of advice that’s guided my career: start with the end in mind. Too often, people manage their careers from job to job without a long-term plan. Ask yourself where you want to be in 10-15 years, understand the skills and experiences needed for that role, and work backward to develop a plan for you to acquire those skills and experiences. It’s a strategic approach that allows you to optimize your chances of achieving your career goals.
