Lilly mixes managers, reduces U.S. staff due to Solanezumab test fail

Eli Lilly begins new year with reorganizing its leadership structure to pursue better growth opportunities in the upcoming years. The Chief Executive Officer of Lilly, David A. Ricks, who’s new position is also one among the latest promotions, said that the changes made to pharmaceutical therapeutics and geographic business should simplify and maximize the company’s late-stage pipeline and new drugs, as well as to improve productivity.

The company has made several changes, which assume some reduction in leadership positions. One of the new changes is appointing Christi Shaw as new Bio-Medicines business boss, beginning April 3, who succeeds Ricks, who became Lilly’s president and CEO on January 1, as senior vice president and president of Lilly Bio-Medicines.

Another change will take effect in February, as Lilly’s Diabetes, Oncology and Bio-Medicines human pharmaceutical therapeutic business areas will China to the U.S., Japanese and Canadian markets in which they already operate.

Enrique Conterno, senior vice president of Lilly and president of Lilly Diabetes, will assume additional responsibilities as president of Lilly USA, as curren president of Lilly USA, Alex Azar, has decided to leave Lilly to pursue other career opportunities.

Lilly’s current Emerging Markets business will combine with Europe to form Lilly International, which will have commercial responsibility for the company’s human pharmaceutical products in these markets. Alfonso (Chito) Zulueta, who has led the Emerging Markets business for the last three years, will be senior vice president of Lilly and president of Lilly International.

Lilly said on Thursday that Sue Mahony, Ph.D., will continue as senior vice president of Lilly and president of Lilly Oncology, which is basically not a change, but the company considered it worth of confirming the position.

Staff reduction due to Solanezumab’s failure

Lilly announced reductions to its U.S. field force in December, as it expects patent expirations for key products later this year and also because of disappointment of clinical trial results on solanezumab.

“With new medicines recently launched—and potential new medicines in development for cancer, diabetes, autoimmune diseases, neurodegeneration, and pain—Lilly is in the early stages of a new growth period,” said Ricks. “Now is the time to make sure that our organization is set up to make the most of these opportunities. With clear priorities and the right structure, achieving growth while improving our productivity will go hand-in-hand.”

About Shaw and Azar

In her new role, Shaw will lead Lilly’s immunology, neurodegeneration, and pain, as well as many of the company’s established brand products.

Ricks welcomed Shaw back from Novartis to Lilly, where she started her career: “Throughout her career, Christi has produced strong results, built a reputation for accountability and showed compassion for patients. Her success in leading medical and commercial functions and her experience working with product development make her an ideal choice for Lilly Bio-Medicines.”

Shaw worked at Lilly from 1989 to 2002 in sales and marketing roles. Most recently, she served as president of Novartis USA and previously as North American region head of Novartis Oncology. In the 2000s, she held a series of increasingly responsible roles in the Janssen and Ethicon subsidiaries of Johnson & Johnson.

“It’s wonderful to be home again at Lilly,” Shaw said. “There’s no place in our industry I’d rather be today. With its extraordinary portfolio and promising late-stage pipeline, Lilly is in a strong position to make life better for patients dealing with some of the most challenging diseases.”

Ricks also commented: “I want to take this opportunity to thank Alex Azar for his contributions throughout his time at Lilly.  Over the past five years, Alex has very successfully led our largest affiliate through challenging times, delivering high employee engagement, customer loyalty, and business results. We are grateful for his leadership and wish him well in this next chapter of his professional life.”