Elliott Sigal has served as chief scientific officer and president of R&D since October 2004. He was appointed executive vice president of Bristol-Myers Squibb in November 2006 and is a member of the company's Management Council. Elliott joined Bristol-Myers Squibb in November 1997 as vice president of the newly created department of Applied Genomics. In October 1999, he became senior vice president for Early Discovery and Applied Technology. He was named head of Drug Discovery & Exploratory Development in January 2001. Prior to his current role, Elliott served as senior vice president of Global Clinical and Pharmaceutical Development and co-chair of the Brand Development Operating Committee. Elliott has more than 25 years of combined experience in medicine, research and management. In 1992 he joined the pharmaceutical company Syntex and held positions of increasing responsibility in drug discovery. In 1995 he joined the genomics firm Mercator Genetics as vice president of R&D. While there he provided the research leadership that resulted in the discovery of the gene for hemochromatosis -- one of the most common genetic diseases in the U.S. in which the body absorbs too much iron and can lead to liver, heart or pancreas failure. Elliott received his medical degree from the University of Chicago in 1981 and trained in internal medicine and pulmonary medicine at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), where he also received his research training at the Cardiovascular Research Institute. He served on the faculty of the UCSF Department of Medicine from 1988 to 1992. Prior to medical school Elliott studied engineering and management at Purdue University, where he received a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science, and his Ph.D.