During his reign as executive vice president of Sanofi-Aventis, he was the recipient of the Global Pharmaceutical R&D Director of the Year Award in 2001 and in 2004. As head of global research at Sanofi-Aventis, the surviving company following the merger of Hoechst Marion Roussel and Rhone Poulenc Rorer, Douglas transformed what was then a traditional R&D organization into a novel organization called Drug Innovation and Approval, versions of which are currently the operative models in the pharmaceutical industry.

In his current role leading MIT’s Center for Biomedical Innovation, Douglas’ mission is “to transform the discovery, development, manufacture, and distribution of cost-effective therapeutics and devices.” Douglas will direct collaboration of academia, government, and industry “to generate and disseminate high-impact systemic solutions that enhance efficacy, safety, and quality of patient care, worldwide.”

Among his many awards for achievement are the Heart of the Year Award from the Chicago Heart Association and the Louis B Russell Memorial Award from the American Heart Association, both for his development of high blood pressure screening and control programs for African American churches in Chicago. Douglas was also the recipient of the Life Time Achievement Award from the National Organization of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers. In addition, Germany’s University of Frankfort awarded Douglas the Wolfgang von Goethe Medal of Honor, an honor only bestowed 23 times in the past 60 years.

Prior to working in the pharmaceutical industry, Douglas was Assistant Professor of Medicine and Clinical Pharmacology and Director of the Hypertension Clinic of the Pritzker School of Medicine at University of Chicago; Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Science & Regulatory Section of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers Association of America; member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and a member of the Chemistry Visiting Committee of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

After graduating cum laude from Lehigh University, Douglas earned his MD and PhD in Physical Chemistry from Cornell University and completed his internship and residency in Internal Medicine at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institution and a Fellowship in Neuroendocrinology at the National Institutes of Health. He is a past president of the Student National Medical Association and was President Jimmy Carter’s host at the unveiling of Mr. Carter’s 1976 national healthcare plan.

Douglas is a Fellow of the High Blood Pressure Council. He is a member of the Board of Trustees at Lehigh University and the Wolfgang von Goethe University of Frankfurt. Douglas also serves on the board of directors of Gene Logic, Inc., Nitromed, Inc., and is chairman of the board of directors of Alantos Pharmaceuticals, Inc.