Blink Health appoints Kurt Sauer as CISO
Blink Health announces the appointment of Kurt Sauer as CISO. Sauer, who most recently served as Vice President of Trust & Information Security at Salesforce, brings 25 years of experience in information security to Blink, including having served as the Chief Security Officer of Skype from 2003 to 2008.
Sauer’s hiring rounds out Blink Health’s leadership team. The company recently appointed several other executives with decades of combined leadership experience in the pharmaceutical and consumer e-commerce categories:
- Bill O’Donnell: EVP, Head of Engineering,
- Mark Diffley: VP, Head of Finance,
- Michael Nameth: EVP, Cloud and Specialty Pharmacy,
- Susan Lang: Chief Strategy Officer,
- Robert Birge: Executive Vice President of Product & Chief Marketing Officer,
- Rochelle DiRe: Chief People Officer.
These hirings were made in the midst of growth for Blink as the company continues to invest in its technology platform and in service expansion.
“Our new leadership team represents the best talent in several fields critical to our success, including pharmaceuticals, e-commerce and technology,” said Blink Health co-founder and CEO Geoffrey Chaiken.
“With proven track records of delivering strong results, I am pleased to have these experienced executives working to make sure all Americans have access to the medications they need.”
“In today’s talent market, companies are battling for proven, innovative leaders. Part of Blink’s competitive advantage is its unique mission and commitment to change,” said Todd Zangrillo, Partner & Head of Consumer Practice for True Search, the recruitment firm retained to help build the C-suite.
“We are thrilled to be Blink’s strategic partner in securing such high caliber talent. We look forward to seeing how this new team executes Blink’s vision for change in the pharmaceutical industry,” Zangrillo added.
Blink Health offers the lowest price on all generic prescription medications. Customers simply purchase their prescription medications on the company’s website or mobile app, and then pick up their prescriptions at any of Blink Health’s more than 33,000 participating pharmacies.
Biographies of the new Blink Health executive team are included below:
Bill O’Donnell, Executive Vice President, Head of Engineering: O’Donnell was appointed to oversee the growth of Blink’s technology and engineering. He brings more than 25 years of software development experience and building superior teams. O’Donnell previously served as Kayak’s Chief Architect and General Manager of Mobile, culminating in the $2.1B sale to the Priceline Group in 2013.
Kurt Sauer, Chief Information Security Officer: Sauer is the company’s most recent addition and his hiring caps a series of executive appointments. Sauer brings 25 years of experience in information security and most recently served as Vice President of Trust & Information Security at Salesforce, ensuring the information security architecture of the company’s products, infrastructure and supply chain.
Mark Diffley, Vice President, Head of Finance: Diffley is responsible for Blink’s finance function. He brings to Blink Health 23 years of corporate finance experience, most recently serving as the SVP Global Controller at Kayak and Controller at SeatGeek.
Susan Lang, Chief Strategy Officer: Lang leads Blink’s development process and oversees supply chain efforts and the pharmacy network. She previously spent six years as the SVP and Chief Supply Chain officer at Express Scripts, the pharmacy benefit management company in the U.S., and also founded the healthcare consulting firm XIL Consulting.
Michael Nameth, Executive Vice President, Cloud and Specialty Pharmacy: Nameth oversees Blink’s efforts to remove the complexity many patients experience when filling their prescriptions. He previously was CEO of Aureus Health Services, a national specialty pharmacy. He also served as EVP of Walgreens Specialty Pharmacy and served as President of Wellpoint’s pharmacy benefit manager, NextRx, which was acquired by Express Scripts in 2009.
Robert Birge, Executive Vice President of Product and Chief Marketing Officer: Birge brings 25 years of marketing experience to Blink Health. He previously served as Chief Marketing Officer at Kayak, where he grew the brand to become a household name in the US and Europe and a leading company in the travel industry.
Rochelle DiRe, Chief People Officer: DiRe is responsible for unleashing the potential of Blink Health’s team. She previously designed talent and organizational strategies that helped iconic media and technology companies scale and evolve, including Martha Stewart Living, Time Warner, Quirky and LimeWire.