Bench International Appoints William R. Sigmund, M.D. To Lead New York City Office; Seasoned Industry Executive will Focus on East Coast Operations and Global Executive Searches.

NEW YORK -- Bench International, a global executive search firm specializing exclusively in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors, has appointed William R. Sigmund, II, MD, MHS, FACC, as Senior Vice President & Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Sigmund will be responsible for overseeing East Coast engagement operations for Bench International, and will be intricately involved with executive searches throughout the U.S. and internationally.

Dr. Sigmund brings over 14 years of senior pharmaceutical industry experience to Bench International, having served most recently at Pfizer, Inc. as Vice President, Worldwide Medical. Following a distinguished academic career at Johns-Hopkins University, Dr. Sigmund began his career in the pharmaceutical industry with Warner Lambert Parke-Davis (WLPD). He was one of a select few individuals tapped by Pfizer to serve as a change leader during the WLPD merger with Pfizer. Dr. Sigmund is board-certified in internal medicine, with a subspecialty in cardiovascular diseases, and is a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology and The Academy of Medicine of New Jersey.

"Bill remains deeply committed to the pharmaceutical industry, given his love and passion for building effective teams and his focus on people and career development. He is recognized in the industry for his skills in identifying talent and in building competitive teams," said Denise DeMan-Williams, president, CEO and founder of Bench International. "We are honored that Bill has decided to contribute to the pharmaceutical industry more broadly by having a greater impact on this ever-changing sector, as a member of the Bench International team."

Aside from its unique performance and milestone-based approach to delivering retained search services, Bench International has pioneered its S*T*A*R Solution(TM), (Strategic Talent Acquisition and Retention Solution) program, which is the most effective diversity talent recruiting program currently available to their pharmaceutical clients. This innovative program provides recruitment and retention strategies for ethnic, gender and culturally diverse leadership talent.

About Bench

Bench International (www.benchinternational.com) is a performance and milestone driven, retained search firm, serving the global pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors. Bench International was founded in 1974, by Denise (DeeDee) DeMan-Williams, and is the oldest industry-exclusive search firm in the United States. The firm is dedicated to bringing diversity of gender, ethnicity and of culture into the leadership ranks of its client companies. Bench International continues to expand its global presence and has offices in New York, California, and the United Kingdom.