Overview

Gender

male

Robert was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Cytokinetics in January 2007 and has been a member of our Board of Directors since then. Previously, he served as Cytokinetics’ President and held other senior-level positions at the Company overseeing research and development, finance, corporate development, legal, commercial operations, and business development at various times since participating in the launch of Company operations in 1998.

Prior to Cytokinetics, Robert held senior positions in business development and marketing at COR Therapeutics from 1991 to 1998. He also performed roles of increasing responsibility in sales, marketing, and other pharmaceutical business functions at Marion Laboratories and Syntex Corporation beginning in 1981.

Robert has served on the faculty at the Center for BioEntrepreneurship at University of California, San Francisco, where he taught a corporate finance course to graduate students. He co-chaired the BIO Business Development Committee and is a frequent lecturer on matters of business development and finance in the biopharmaceutical industry.

He served on the National Board of the American Committee of the Weizmann Institute of Science and established the Blum Family Venture Philanthropy Fund to propel basic science discoveries at the Institute with potential to benefit the Israeli life sciences economy. In addition, he established the Tikkun Olam Youth Science Prizes for Bay Area middle and high schools, designed to further science education and exploration in the spirit of repairing the world. Robert served on the Board of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco and founded and chaired its Business Leadership Council. He also served on the Boards of San Francisco’s Contemporary Jewish Museum and the Anti-Defamation League.

Robert was named a Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute in recognition of his leadership in corporate and civic responsibilities. He is a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network and has moderated seminars related to science, health, and technology at Aspen Action Forums.

Mr. Blum received B.A. degrees in Human Biology and Economics from Stanford University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

Robert was a fan of mountain bluegrass music long before it was fashionable and has been known to carry a harmonica in his briefcase, much to the dismay of nearby hotel guests. He enjoys trying to keep up with his wife Dana and daughters, Brittany and Bridget, as well as his Bernese mountain dog, Baron, on long hikes in the Presidio.