Mr Smilek replaces former CFO Mariam Morris, who resigned effective August 1, 2008 and will serve as a part-time consultant to the company to assist in the management transition.
Mr Smilek joined Sucampo Pharmaceuticals in February 2008 as vice president of finance and corporate controller. Prior to joining Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Mr Smilek was the senior director of finance at Vanda Pharmaceuticals beginning in January 2006. Before that, he was senior director of financial reporting, analysis and general accounting at McGraw-Hill Companies from January 2005 to January 2006.
Ryuji Ueno, chairman and CEO of Sucampo, said: “Jan’s knowledge of our company and his strong financial acumen make him the ideal executive to lead our finance department during this period.”