The journey from an active chemical compound to a shelf-ready, commercially viable drug product is a complex landscape filled with technical hurdles, regulatory demands, and scaling challenges. Navigating this landscape requires an expert who understands both the microscopic physical behavior of formulations and the high-stakes realities of global supply chains. Very few executives possess a breadth of vision that spans both the research bench and global commercial manufacturing.
Catalent Pharma Solutions has become the setting for the latest chapter in Karunakar Sukuru’s career. In August 2026, he stepped into the position of Segment Vice President, Global Product Development & Innovation. The appointment followed his January 2025 elevation to Global Vice President of Pharma Product Development & Head of Scientific Advisory, adding a broader scientific leadership dimension to his responsibilities. With more than three decades of experience in pharmaceutical drug-product and technology development, manufacturing, and delivery systems, his leadership has spanned complex product-development programs, drug-delivery technologies, and global technical operations.
Formative Years and the Ten-Year Endo Era
Karunakar entered the pharmaceutical industry through Natco Pharma, joining its research and development team in 1995. During his tenure, which continued through 1997, he worked on formulations spanning several dosage forms, including solid medicines, oral liquids, gels, ointments, and pellets. Banner Pharmacaps became the next stage of his professional development in 1997. From May 2002 to November 2006, as Manager of the Pilot Plant, he oversaw softgel product development, clinical batch manufacturing, and helped build and commission a new pilot tablet development facility and a GMP packaging suite for bottling and blisters.
His professional experience extended beyond laboratories and manufacturing facilities. Between August 2005 and September 2008, Karunakar served part-time as a Registered Pharmacist at Walgreens, maintaining a connection with the retail pharmacy environment while continuing his pharmaceutical industry career.
In November 2006, he transitioned to Endo Pharmaceuticals in Malvern, Pennsylvania, beginning a distinguished nearly ten-year tenure. He started as Senior Manager of Technical Operations, applying Quality by Design (QbD) principles to process development and scale-up across liquid orals, fast-dissolve, immediate-release, and extended-release tablets. By November 2008, he was promoted to Director of Technical Operations, leading teams in charge of globally outsourced branded and generic portfolios.
His responsibilities expanded rapidly at Endo. Between January 2013 and June 2013, he served as Director of Pharmaceutical Technology and Analytical Services, providing CMC leadership across transdermal systems, sublingual and buccal delivery, oncology, narcotic and hormonal parenterals, creams, abuse-deterrent tablets, and implant delivery systems. At Endo Pharmaceuticals, his remit eventually extended beyond product technology into the management of external supply operations. As Director of Pharmaceutical Technology & Supply Chain, he led the team responsible for sourcing the company’s branded pharmaceutical products from external partners. Over approximately 22 months, his work brought pharmaceutical technology expertise together with the coordination of external partners supporting the branded product portfolio.
From April 2015 to October 2016, he served as Director and ultimately Senior Director of Pharmaceutical Development in Branded R&D, managing international contractors, regulatory filings, and acquisition due diligence.
A Decade of Leadership at Catalent
In October 2016, Karunakar brought his extensive expertise to Catalent Pharma Solutions as Vice President of Product Development for Softgel Technologies. Over three years, he guided global softgel development strategies, setting the stage for a series of executive promotions. A further career milestone came in September 2019, when he assumed global responsibility for product development across Catalent’s Softgel & Oral Technologies business. The position brought two important drug-delivery areas under his leadership and broadened the range of development programs within his remit.
His executive mandate continued to expand across Catalent’s global infrastructure. He served as Global VP of Product Development for Pharma Product Delivery from July 2022 to October 2022, before taking over as Global Vice President of Rx Product Development in November 2022. In January 2025, he added the role of Global Vice President of Pharma Product Development & Head of Scientific Advisory, marking another expansion of his leadership responsibilities and placing him at the intersection of scientific strategy, product development, and technical decision-making across Catalent.
Most recently, in August 2026, he assumed the role of Segment VP for Global Product Development & Innovation, bringing Product Development and Scientific Advisory together across Catalent’s Pharma and Consumer Health segment.
Intellectual Property and Industry Leadership
Throughout his career, Karunakar has maintained technical oversight across more than a dozen CDMOs worldwide, collaborating with hundreds of pharmaceutical customers, including leading biotechnology and pharmaceutical enterprises. His scientific contributions have yielded several granted patents and more than 20 pending patent applications for innovative dosage-form delivery technologies. Recent patent activity continues to include controlled-release and enteric softgel technologies, underscoring the ongoing development of his formulation and drug-delivery portfolio.
His executive leadership seamlessly bridges high-level business responsibility with deep scientific rigor. In his current role, he emphasizes advancing drug-delivery science, solving complex formulation challenges, improving bioavailability, and expanding delivery options for complex modalities such as peptides and PROTACs. As 2026 progresses, Karunakar remains a decisive force in bringing next-generation therapeutics from laboratory concepts into global commercial development and delivery.
