Leadership

Johanna Colvin Riesen photo

Johanna Colvin Riesen

Vice President, Clinical Operations

Ms. Riesen joined Pliant in March 2024 as Vice President of Clinical Operations.

Ms. Riesen brings to Pliant over 22 years of clinical operations expertise from across the biopharmaceutical industry with a deep knowledge surrounding the successful execution of global Phase I to Phase IV programs. Most recently, Ms. Riesen held the role of Executive Director, Head of Global Clinical Operations at Rigel Pharmaceuticals, where she led the strategic planning and execution of the Company’s portfolio of early and late phase clinical studies, including post-marketing requirements. Prior to Rigel, Ms. Riesen served as Global Development Program Leader at Janssen Research and Development, a division of Johnson & Johnson. Prior to Johnson & Johnson’s acquisition of Actelion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Ms. Riesen held roles of increasing responsibility at Actelion most recently serving as Director of Clinical Operations. Ms. Riesen began her professional career holding clinical research roles at FibroGen and Titan Pharmaceuticals.

Ms. Riesen earned a B.A. from San Jose State University and is currently studying at the School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley.

Our Team

Pliant is led by a team of world-renowned fibrosis researchers and highly experienced drug developers focused on translating science into novel therapies for patients in need.