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James (Jim) G. Hall
President & CEO
Bringing over 30 years of pharmaceutical and combination product manufacturing and development experience, Jim’s expertise has guided us for over 25 years.
During his tenure, Jim has risen from a managerial role to Director, General Manager and Vice President. In 2017, Jim was appointed as our President, overseeing all operations at Lifecore. Jim was appointed to his current position in 2022 when Lifecore’s parent company (Landec Corporation) transitioned to become a standalone (Lifecore Biomedical).
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John D. Morberg
Chief Financial Officer & Executive Vice President
John was appointed as Chief Financial Officer of Landec Corporation (former parent company of Lifecore) in January 2021. Prior to joining Landec, he was CFO and General Counsel for BL Restaurant Holdings, LLC. Previously, he held roles including CEO, CFO, and board member at Garden Fresh Restaurant Corp; CFO of DEI Holdings, Inc., through its initial public offering and the early stages of being a public company; and Vice President and Controller of PETCO.
John began his career at KPMG and has a Juris Doctor from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law and a BBA, Accounting from the University of San Diego. He is a member of the State Bar of California and holds an inactive CPA license. John was appointed to his current position in 2022 when Landec Corporation transitioned to become a standalone (Lifecore Biomedical).
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Jackie Q. Klecker
General Manager & Executive Vice President
With over 30 years of industry experience in quality, manufacturing, and development, Jackie has guided our quality assurance for over a decade.
After serving as Director of Quality from July 2010 to June 2014, Jackie went on to become our Senior Director of Quality Assurance and Regulatory Affairs from June 2014 to June 2018. In 2018, she was appointed as our Vice President and General Manager. Jackie was appointed to her current position in 2022 when Lifecore’s parent company (Landec Corporation) transitioned to become a standalone (Lifecore Biomedical).
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Darren M. Hieber
Sr. Vice President of Corporate Development & Partnerships
Darren is responsible for developing Lifecore’s corporate strategy, bringing us two decades of pharmaceutical experience specifically focused on business development in high-growth environments. Darren has a passion for strategic business development, executive-level business support, and driving results.
Darren was the Vice President of Business Development at Catalent Biologics before joining Lifecore in November 2021. He was appointed to his current position in 2022 when Lifecore’s parent company (Landec Corporation) transitioned to become a standalone (Lifecore Biomedical).
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Kara Morley
Sr. Vice President of Human Resources
Kara is responsible for leading the human resources function at Lifecore, bringing over 25 years of HR experience.
Kara began her HR career in the staffing industry and quickly moved into corporate HR where she has supported teams in the banking, services, retail, CPG, and distribution industries. Kara was the Vice President of HR at Werner Electric before joining Lifecore in October 2021. She was appointed to her current position in 2022 when Lifecore’s parent company (Landec Corporation) transitioned to become a standalone (Lifecore Biomedical).
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Matt Augustson
Sr. Vice President of Information Technology
Matt partners closely with the company’s business functions to deliver enterprise solutions that will support growth and future-proof the company while seeking operational excellence and harnessing data for business insights.
With more than 20 years in the IT industry, Matt is a proven leader in developing, designing, selling, implementing, and architecting end-to-end IT solutions for manufacturing, health care and retail.
Before joining Lifecore, he worked at First Brands Group, Prime Therapeutics, Best Buy, Accenture, Oracle, and Retek. Matt was appointed to his current position in 2022 when Lifecore’s parent company (Landec Corporation) transitioned to become a standalone (Lifecore Biomedical).
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Rick Sitarz
Vice President of New Business Development
Responsible for new business development, marketing, strategic planning and project management, Rick brings over 30 years of biotech experience to Lifecore.
After leaving his previous role as Vice President of Peripheral Interventions Marketing at Boston Scientific, Rick joined us as our Vice President of New Business Development in June 2015.
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Kipling Thacker, Ph.D.
Vice President and Chief Scientist
Kip is the co-inventor of the process Lifecore uses to make sodium hyaluronate. He has held various research and business development positions with Lifecore from 1981 to 2000, when he then served as our Director of New Business Development.
In 2004, he was appointed as our Vice President of New Business Development, and in 2010 he rose to his current position as our Vice President and Chief Scientist.
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Scott J. Collins
Vice President of Finance
With over 20 years of financial experience, Scott has worked across various finance positions with us, including as our Financial Controller from 2007 to 2009.
In 2010, he became our Senior Director of Finance for seven years before his appointment as our Vice President of Finance.
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Steve W. Laninga
Vice President of Operations
Bringing over 20 years of pharmaceutical manufacturing experience to Lifecore, Steve began his career as an engineer and moved into leadership positions in engineering and operations within the pharmaceutical industry.
After leaving his previous role as Vice President of Operations and Site Lead at Perrigo, Steve joined us as our Vice President of Operations in January 2020.
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Phil Sticha
Vice President of Business Operations
With more than 26 years of tenure at Lifecore, Phil has extensive knowledge of all areas within the organization. He served as Senior Director of Manufacturing for more than 20 years prior to joining the New Business Development team as a Senior Director.
In 2022, Phil was appointed to his current role focusing on business operational excellence.