
Kirk Barnes
Co-Founder and President
TransPharMed
Kirk is the Co-Founder and President of TransPharMed, a sales excellence firm that uses coaching and connections to accelerate the sales cycle for digital health innovation. TransPharMed is a current member of the American Medical Association Physician Innovation Network (AMA - PIN). Kirk has a background in globally commercializing
pharmaceutical, biotechnology, nanotechnology, diagnostic, digital health and medical device technologies, including several billion-dollar products. Kirk has held a broad range of positions encompassing leadership, sales, sales excellence coaching and training, business development, global marketing, lobbying and market access. Recently, Kirk served as a Start-Up Catalyst for new and emerging healthtech and digital health start-ups at the Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC) incubator housed at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA, where he recently raised the funds to launch its inaugural Healthcare Technology Program.
Kirk served in various positions of increasing responsibility for the following companies: Syneos Health (formerly Inventiv Health), Zogenix, Johnson & Johnson, Takeda and Pfizer. Throughout Kirk’s career, he operated and developed competencies in the following therapeutic categories: endocrinology, cardiology, respiratory, neurology, pain management, central nervous system disorders, oncology and hematology. During his time in the pharma/biotech sector, Kirk helped to launch several blockbuster drugs in the diabetes, oncology, respiratory and neurology therapeutic areas.
Kirk was also a Global Business Development Executive for the NanoProfessor & NanoGuardian divisions of NanoInk, a private equity funded start-up company commercializing research-based nanotechnology from Northwestern University. Kirk marketed innovative anti-counterfeiting solutions to pharmaceutical, defense, consumer and medical device companies in the US, EU and Asia. Furthermore, Kirk led lobbying efforts that contributed to the first draft of the FDA REMS for Long-Acting Opioids, US Health Import Safety Legislation and the E.U. Falsified Medicines Directive. He served as a Board Member of the International Authentication Association (IAA), which monitored and provided guidance regarding authentication techniques and counterfeiting trends.
Kirk continues to serve as a Together.Health Steering Committee Member (Founded under leadership from ONC/HHS), Board Member of the Institute for Health Information Technology (IHIT), ATDC Healthcare Vertical Advisory Board, Coulter Foundation Oversight Committee Member, GA BIO Commercialization Committee Member, Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce BioScience Council Member, and a Board Observer for Patientory (Blockchain Digital Health Company). Kirk holds a B.A. in Economics from Florida A&M University.