About Us

Wes WheelerChief Executive Officer

Wes brings over two decades of leadership experience and a proven track record of delivering growth and operational excellence across multiple high-profile companies within the pharmaceutical services industry. Having served as CEO/President of five different companies, Wes has a wealth of expertise to lead LabConnect through its next phase of growth and international expansion.

Before joining LabConnect, Wes served as President of UPS Healthcare, overseeing a $10 billion business unit, after his role as CEO of Marken where he built the industry’s leading global clinical logistics company. Mr. Wheeler previously served as President of Valeant Pharmaceuticals (now Bausch Health), CEO of Patheon (now part of ThermoFisher), and Divisional CEO of DSM Pharmaceuticals. His early career includes more than a decade in leadership roles at GlaxoSmithKline, most recently as Senior Vice President of Global Manufacturing & Supply.

Wes also serves on several boards, including Chairman of BioTouch and Board Director at Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals, Evotec, Envirotainer, and Argenta.

Julia TarasenkoChief Commercial & Strategy Officer

Julia brings a depth of international business and industry experience specializing in driving dynamic revenue growth, optimizing commercial operations, and cementing strategic partnerships that drive business objectives forward. During her 16 years at Marken, a UPS Healthcare company, Julia held several progressive leadership positions focused on strategic client relationships and operations across Europe. In addition, Julia has lived in APAC region where she oversaw operations for Marken Japan and Singapore. Julia also served in North America as a regional director of East Coast operations in New York and Philadelphia.

Prior to joining LabConnect, Julia was a key member of the Marken Executive Committee as Senior Vice President, Global Strategic Sales where she led Marken’s global strategic sales, marketing, sustainability, packaging solutions, and the team of global alliance directors who oversaw governance with Marken’s largest clients.

Julia holds a Bachelor of Arts in Philology with an emphasis on the Chinese language and a Master of Science in Chinese Language, Literature and Culture from Edinburgh University, Scotland, UK.

Mitch BlumenfeldChief Financial Officer

Mitch joined LabConnect in 2025 as Chief Financial Officer. He brings over 20 years of experience in life sciences and clinical research, most recently as CFO of Network Partners Group, a leading pharmaceutical and medical device consulting company. He previously served as CFO of Signant Health, a leading provider of software and services in support of clinical research, with operations in 8 countries. He served as CFO at PCI Pharma Services during a period of rapid growth, overseeing 5 significant acquisitions and geographic expansion to the UK, Ireland, and Australia. Mitch began his career at GE and Cencora and has served as a board advisor and director for a number of startups and early-stage technology companies.

He brings a wealth of experience in rapid growth, private equity-backed companies including extensive global operations experience, mergers & acquisitions, and strategic planning. He holds a B.S. in Computer Science Engineering from Bucknell University and a M.S. in Computer Science & Applications from Virginia Tech

Debra GranChief Human Resources Officer

Debra is responsible for developing and executing people-centered strategies to support LabConnect’s success. She previously served as Corporate Vice President, North America for DiaSorin, where she was responsible for the strategic direction and execution of all Human Resource programs.

Debra has held global leadership roles within biotechnology, healthcare, and service industries, including Amplifon Americas, 3M HIS, and GE Capital IT Solutions. She is a Senior Professional (SPHR) with the Society of Human Resource Management and Strategic Human Resource Leadership from Cornell University.

Charles CastanoChief Technology Officer

Charles is a proven leader in digital technology and innovation with extensive global and broad-industry experience across some of the world’s most iconic brands, including Amazon, Microsoft, Genentech/Roche, Sanofi, AAA, Eaton and Compaq.

Over his progressive career, Charles has held a unique combination of leadership roles as CIO, CTO and CMO, where Charles excels at bridging strategic insights and operational excellence between the technology function and the business growth needs.

Charles is adept at creating maximum value by driving business results through data, digital insights, and AI transformations.

Charles holds a Master of Business Administration from Fordham University.

Shachi SharmaChief Quality Officer

Shachi brings over 20 years of global leadership experience at multiple pharmaceutical and biotech companies. She has successfully built and led diverse and high-performing teams to bring new therapies to patients worldwide. With a progressive career covering Quality, Strategy, Operations, Engineering, and Program Management, she has brought her strong leadership skills and strategic thinking to support multiple product approvals and launches across various therapeutic areas such as Hematology, Rare Diseases, Ophthalmology sand Neurology. Shachi also serves in Board Advisory roles driving digital transformation and innovation.

Her previous experience includes global leadership roles at Boehringer Ingelheim, Bayer and Biogen in Biologics and Small molecules, covering all phases of Drug Development and Product life cycle to ensure strict standards for Patient Safety, Quality and Regulatory Compliance. Her educational background includes MS in Electrical Engineering and MBA in Management.

Stephen LesserSenior Vice President & General Counsel

Stephen brings nearly two decades of leadership experience advising senior executives and boards at life sciences and technology companies on all aspects of corporate legal matters and governance to support their innovation and growth strategies.

Before joining LabConnect, Stephen founded Tairbhe Ventures, a consulting firm supporting corporate strategy, business development and complex transactions in the life sciences space. Previously, he served as Principal and Lead Counsel for NovaQuest Capital Management, where he advised on product finance transactions, equity investments, and portfolio management activities for pre-clinical, clinical, and commercial stage biopharma companies. Additionally, Stephen served as Lead Counsel for Leaps by Bayer, Bayer's corporate venture capital team, as Counsel for Bayer U.S., and as an associate at Troutman Pepper Locke.

Bill FingerSenior Vice President

Bill brings more than 25 years of diagnostics and clinical research experience, with deep expertise in the global lab and pharmacy industry. As a senior executive, he is recognized as an innovative thinker with a proven ability to develop strategy, drive execution, and advance organizational performance while maintaining a sharp focus on operational excellence.

Most recently, Bill served as Vice President and General Manager, Pharma Services with Quest Diagnostics. Prior to that, he was Chief Operating Officer for Interpace Pharma Solutions, Executive Vice President of Precision Medicine and Pharma for Cancer Genetics, and held leadership roles in scientific affairs and biorepository with LabCorp.

Bill began his career as a Medical Technologist and holds a Master of Health Care Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.