Sai Life Sciences strengthens focus on scientific excellence with dedicated CMC leadership role

Sai Life Sciences has strengthened its focus on scientific excellence and organizational capability within its CMC business unit with the appointment of Stephen Hermitage as Senior Vice President, CMC Scientific Excellence & Learning.

A seasoned pharmaceutical R&D leader with more than two decades of experience in chemical development and pharmaceutical innovation, Hermitage brings deep scientific, process development, and drug development expertise to the role. Before joining Sai Life Sciences, he spent over 24 years at GSK, where he served as a department head and member of the global chemical development leadership team, supporting programs across the development lifecycle—from accelerated early-phase supply to complex Quality by Design (QbD) strategies and commercial launch.

In his new role at Sai Life Sciences, Hermitage will focus on advancing scientific excellence and strengthening technical and operational capabilities across the CMC organization. The move reflects Sai Life Sciences’ continued commitment to building expertise, enhancing delivery excellence, and fostering a strong culture of learning to support evolving customer and business needs.

Hermitage has also spearheaded the development and evolution of Sai Academy, Sai Life Sciences’ global technical learning initiative designed to strengthen scientific capability, and technical standards across the organization.

Through interactive workshops, practical learning frameworks, and structured capability-building programs, Sai Academy supports a ‘right first time’ culture, promotes knowledge-sharing, and equips scientists and leaders with tools to strengthen scientific and operational execution.

With his transition into this dedicated role, Hermitage will now focus exclusively on capability building, knowledge-sharing, and learning initiatives designed to enhance efficiency and strengthen execution across the CMC function.

The dedicated Scientific Excellence & Learning role reflects the growing importance of capability development in the CRDMO sector, where increasingly complex programs and accelerated timelines demand deep expertise, strong collaboration, and consistent delivery.

At Sai Life Sciences, investment in scientific capability and organizational learning continues to play an important role in strengthening delivery excellence and supporting customer programs across development and manufacturing. The enhanced focus on CMC Scientific Excellence & Learning further reinforces the company’s culture of scientific rigor, collaboration, and continuous improvement.