Biogen today announced the appointment of Michel Vounatsos as executive vice president and chief commercial officer, effective April 18, 2016.
Mr. Vounatsos will oversee the development and execution of Biogen’s global commercial strategy, with a focus on the continued growth of Biogen’s product portfolio and the development of the commercial infrastructure and approach to support the company’s key pipeline assets. He will report to George Scangos, Ph.D., chief executive officer, and will be a member of the Biogen management team.
“Michel is a sophisticated global business leader who brings a track record of commercial success and creativity to Biogen,” said Dr. Scangos. “As the complexity of our business and the expectations of our stakeholders accelerate, Michel will play a critical role in driving our near-term growth while helping prepare our organization to support our increasingly robust and diverse pipeline.”
Mr. Vounatsos comes to Biogen after a 20 year career at Merck, where he most recently served as president, Primary Care Business Line and Merck Customer Centricity. Prior to this role, he held leadership positions at Merck across Europe and in China. Mr. Vounatsos attended the Universite Victor Segalen, Bordeaux II, in France, receiving his C.S.C.T. certificate in Medicine. He received his M.B.A. from the HEC School of Management in Paris.
“I am excited to work with my new colleagues to deliver on the unique promise of the Biogen pipeline as we seek to transform the lives of patients with neurodegenerative and rare diseases around the world,” said Mr. Vounatsos. “As I move to Biogen, I am grateful to the team at Merck for the tremendous opportunities I have had over the past two decades.”
Source: Biogen
Five years ago, GSK made headlines when it hired Emma Walmsley to become the first woman to run a major pharmaceutical company. Now the Big Pharma has brought in another woman to control the company’s finances. Julie Brown will be GSK’s next chief financial officer. Brown, currently the chief operating and financial officer at fashion and beauty brand Burberry Group, is set to replace Iain Mackay.
Moderna created a new role responsible for “building out the company’s organization to support its growing pipeline.” Starting first thing 2023, Juan Andres, Moderna’s manufacturing head, will step into this new role under the title president of strategic partnerships and enterprise expansion, the company said Thursday.
The latest takeover is anticipated to boost the presence of Torrent in the dermatology segment. Indian company Torrent Pharmaceuticals has signed a definitive agreement for the complete acquisition of Curatio Healthcare for $245.16m (Rs20bn).
