Michael Heffernan

Michael Heffernan is the Founder and Chairman of the Board of Collegium Pharmaceutical. Mr. Heffernan served as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Collegium Pharmaceutical until June 2018. He is a successful entrepreneur and biopharmaceutical leader with over 25 years of experience building and leading development stage and commercial companies.

Mr. Heffernan co-founded Avenge Bio, an Immuno-Oncology company that he is actively managing. He was previously CEO of Onset Dermatologics, a dermatology company that he founded and spun out of Collegium to create PreCision Dermatology and was later sold to Valeant. Mr. Heffernan held previous positions as co-founder and CEO of Clinical Studies Ltd., a pharmaceutical contract research organization that was sold to PhyMatrix Corp, a public healthcare services company, and later served as CEO and Chairman of PhyMatrix Corp. Mr. Heffernan began his career at Eli Lilly and Company and served in numerous sales and marketing roles. He has also been an advisor, investor, and board member in a number of biopharma, medical device, and healthcare services companies. Mr. Heffernan serves on the board of directors of Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (AKBA), Trevi Therapeutics, Inc. (TRVI), Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company Ltd. (BHVN), and Synlogic, Inc. (SYBX). Mr. Heffernan previously served on the board of directors of Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., a public pharmaceutical company prior to its merger with Akebia, Ocata Therapeutics, Inc. (OCAT), Cornerstone Therapeutics Inc. (now known as Chiesi USA, Inc.) (CRTX), and Veloxis Pharmaceuticals A/S, prior to its acquisition by Asahi Kasei. Mr. Heffernan is a current member of the boards of several privately held companies. Mr. Heffernan earned his B.S. Degree in Pharmacy from the University of Connecticut.