Neavelle Anthony Coles (born May 17, 1960) is an American physician and biotechnology executive. He has served as chairman of the board of directors of

Cerevel Therapeutics Cerevel Therapeutics Holdings, Inc. was an American biotechnology and pharmaceuticals company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, focused on the development of novel therapies for mental and neurological illnesses. History Cerevel was establish ...

, a company focused on neurological disease treatments, since 2018, and was its chief executive officer from 2019 to 2023.

Early life and education

Coles was born in

Roanoke, Virginia Roanoke ( ) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. It lies in Southwest Virginia, along the Roanoke River, in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Blue Ridge range of the greater Appalachian Mountains. Roanok ...

, to Neavelle Anthony Coles, an accountant and minister, and Leona Rogers Coles, an office manager. He graduated from

DuVal High School Duval High School was a government-funded co-educational bi-modal partially academically selective and comprehensive secondary day school, located in Armidale, New South Wales, Australia. Founded in 1974, the school enrolled approximately ...

Lanham, Maryland Lanham is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, it has a population of 11,282. The New Carrollton station (the terminus of the Washington Metro's O ...

. Coles earned a Bachelor of Arts from

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

, a Master of Public Health from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

, and a Doctor of Medicine from

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

. He completed cardiology and internal medicine training at

Massachusetts General Hospital Massachusetts General Hospital (Mass General or MGH) is a teaching hospital located in the West End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is the original and largest clinical education and research facility of Harvard Medical School/Harvar ...

and a research fellowship at

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...

. In 2024, Duke University School of Medicine honored him with its Transformational Leadership Award.

Career

Coles began his career in pharmaceuticals, holding executive roles at Merck & Co. (marketing

ACE inhibitors Angiotensin-converting-enzyme inhibitors (ACE inhibitors) are a class of medication used primarily for the treatment of hypertension, high blood pressure and heart failure. This class of medicine works by causing relaxation of blood vessels as ...

Bristol-Myers Squibb The Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, doing business as Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), is an American multinational pharmaceutical company. Headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, BMS is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies and consist ...

(senior vice president of strategy and policy, and marketing for neuroscience and infectious diseases), and

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated is an American biopharmaceutical company based in Boston, Massachusetts. It was one of the first biotech firms to use an explicit strategy of rational drug design rather than combinatorial chemistry. It maint ...

(senior vice president of commercial operations). From 2005 to 2008, Coles served as chief operating officer and president of

NPS Pharmaceuticals Shire plc was a UK-founded Jersey-registered specialty biopharmaceutical company. Originating in the United Kingdom with an operational base in the United States, its brands and products included Vyvanse, Lialda, and Adderall XR. Shire was ...

, becoming chief executive officer in 2006. He was president and CEO of

Onyx Pharmaceuticals Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc. has been a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in South San Francisco, California. The company developed and marketed medicines for the treatment of cancer. Onyx was founded in 1992 by Kevin J. Kinsella and Frank M ...

from 2008 to 2013, and chairman from 2012 to 2013, overseeing its $10.4 billion sale to

Amgen Amgen Inc. (formerly Applied Molecular Genetics Inc.) is an American multinational biopharmaceutical Corporation, company headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California. As one of the world's largest independent biotechnology companies, Amgen has a ...

in 2013. In 2014, Coles co-founded Yumanity Therapeutics with Susan Lindquist, serving as chairman and CEO until 2018, focusing on treatments for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. Since 2013, he has been chairman and CEO of TRATE Enterprises, a private real estate and ventures company. At

, Coles served as CEO from 2019 to 2023, leading a $445 million public listing in 2020, and has been chairman since 2018. He also serves on the board of directors of

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is an American biotechnology company headquartered in Westchester County, New York. The company was founded in 1988. Originally focused on neurotrophic factors and their regenerative capabilities, giving rise to ...

. In 2021, he was elected to the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

Civic and professional affiliations

Coles is co-founder and co-chair of the

Black Economic Alliance The Black Economic Alliance (BEA) is an American nonpartisan coalition of Black business leaders and allies established in 2018. Through the BEA Political Action Committee (PAC), it supports candidates advancing Black economic progress and pros ...

, a nonprofit focused on economic equity. He serves on the boards of the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

, the

Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank focused on Foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Founded in 1921, it is an independent and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit organi ...

, and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Foundation, and is a former trustee of

Personal life

Coles is married to Robyn Coles, and they have three sons. Their eldest son was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma at age 12 and underwent treatment at

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in Manhattan in New York City. MSKCC is one of 72 National Cancer Institute– designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers. Its main campus is ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coles, N. Anthony Living people 1960 births American physicians Johns Hopkins University alumni Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health alumni Duke University School of Medicine alumni People from Roanoke, Virginia