JEFFREY M. DAYNO, MD
President and Chief Executive Officer
Jeffrey M. Dayno, MD, is President and Chief Executive Officer of Harmony Biosciences.
A nationally recognized expert in neuroscience and leader at Harmony Biosciences since the company's inception, Dr. Dayno is responsible for leading the company's business growth, advancing Harmony's clinical development programs, and building out the company's pipeline.
Dr. Dayno led Harmony's successful regulatory strategy for WAKIX which resulted in Breakthrough Therapy designation and priority review followed by FDA-approval of WAKIX® (pitolisant tablets) to treat excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) or cataplexy in adults with narcolepsy. He has been the driving force behind Harmony's patient-focused drug development model, which uses patient insights to inform clinical research programs and building a pipeline focused on potential, next-generation treatments to help people living with rare neurological diseases.
A former practicing neurologist and faculty member at Jefferson Medical College, Dr. Dayno brought his experience at the bedside to the industry 25 years ago and has held multiple leadership positions since then, touching every aspect of the business. He has held leadership roles at Merck & Co., Cephalon, and ViroPharma, building and leading clinical, regulatory, and medical affairs teams toward multiple NDA approvals and medical support for successful product launches. He also served as Principal Investigator on numerous clinical trials and has published and lectured extensively on various topics around evolving pharma business models, value creation and impact, as well as on numerous topics within the field of neurology. In 2023, he was named to the PharmaVoice 100 list of top industry leaders.
Dr. Dayno earned his medical degree from Temple University School of Medicine, completed his residency training in Neurology at Temple University Hospital, and completed a fellowship in Stroke and Cerebrovascular Disorders in the Department of Neurology at Henry Ford Hospital, which held a National Institutes of Health program grant in stroke research. He is a member of the Board of Visitors of the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, serves on the Board of Advisors for Life Science Cares Philadelphia, and sits on the board of Emalex Biosciences. Dr. Dayno has served as the Industry Representative for FDA's Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Committee, as well as served as an expert on several FDA industry advisory panels.
