People In Brief

CDRH compliance chief to retire: Tim Ulatowski will retire from FDA at the end of the year, the veteran agency staffer announced in an April 12 memo to staff. Ulatowski said he made the decision before the new FDA administration came on board last year. An opening for the CDRH Office of Compliance director position was posted April 12 and FDA will review candidates and select a replacement "over the next few weeks," Ulatowski predicts. A smooth transition is important given CDRH's ambitious agenda for the coming years, he said (1"The Gray Sheet" April 5, 2010). "A break in permanent leadership for maybe a few months while all this is occurring would not be helpful," Ulatowski said in the memo. Once the new director is hired, Ulatowski will shift to a temporary advising role until his retirement. He has been with FDA since 1974 and with the Office of Compliance since 2003