The Silicon Valley-based personal genetics test maker 23andMe, which has been stymied by the US Food and Drug Administration, has brought in healthcare PR veteran Angela Wonson as VP of communications.
The company, which was forced to limit its marketing by the US Food and Drug Administration in November, said Wonson will oversee corporate comms., media relations, IR and internal comms.
Wonson takes over for Christine Castro, who left the Mountain View, Calif., company in January for a senior VP/comms. slot at CBS Interactive.
Wonson was VP of comms. for robotic surgery technology company Intuitive Surgical. She is a former chief communications officer at The Cleveland Clinic and did stints at Weber Shandwick (EVP for healthcare media) and Edelman (SVP, nat'l health media) after starting out in TV news.
W20 Group is 23andMe's outside PR agency and has helped handle fallout from the FDA's November order that the company stop marketing health-related claims for its $100 DNA testing kits without approval. That regulatory warning prevents 23andMe from telling customers about, for example, their genetic potential for illness, a major setback for the product and service.
23andMe says it is in talks with the FDA for a resolution.
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Teneo has hired Philipp Grontzki, who is a 20-year veteran of corporate communications and financial journalism, as a managing director in its strategy and communications group.
Rowan Benecke, who co-founded Zeno Group and helmed Burson-Marsteller's tech practice, has joined McKinsey & Co as director of communications for North America.
BCW has named Golin's Matt Coldagelli EVP and leader of its corporate affairs practice in Chicago.
Abby Bailey, who headed corporate communications for Fedex in its Middle East, India and Africa region, has joined Teneo as managing director in Dubai.
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