Anders Gotzsche will serve as interim CEO while the company looks for a replacement for Kare Schultz who leaves the company Oct. 31 for the CEO position at Teva.
H. Lundbeck A/S Chief Financial Officer Anders Götzsche will serve as interim chief executive officer while the company looks for a replacement for Kåre Schultz who leaves the company Oct. 31 for the CEO position at Teva Pharmaceuticals.
On Sept. 11, Teva announced Schultz had accepted the CEO role following a six month search. Schultz joined Lundbeck in 2015 after serving as chief operating officer at Novo Nordisk. He was passed over for the role of CEO at that company and stepped down after a 26-year stint there. Since accepting the Teva position, Schultz has actually pulled double duty running both companies, but his final day at Lundbeck is today. Götzsche is expected to assume his new responsibilities on Nov. 1.
Along with the loss of Schultz in September, Lundbeck also announced Chief Commercial Officer Staffan Schüberg was leaving to take over the role of CEO at an undisclosed company.
In addition to Götzsche, Lundbeck announced other changes to its executive team.
Lundbeck said Peter Anastasiou, the company’s head of its North American operations, will join the executive management team. He will still maintain his responsibility for commercial operations in North America. Anastasiou has been with Lundbeck since 2009 and has since early 2016 served as President of Lundbeck U.S. where he oversees all aspects of the U.S value chain, directing all Commercial, Drug Development and Corporate activities.
Jacob Tolstrup who currently holds the position as executive vice president of corporate functions, will be responsible for commercial operations in Europe, international markets, global marketing and corporate business development. Tolstrup joined Lundbeck in 1999 and has held several positions in finance, investor relations, communication, human resources and corporate business development. Tolstrup has worked in Lundbeck affiliates in the U.S. for approximately four years and was part of the management team of Lundbeck U.S. in 2010-2012.
Lars Rasmussen, Lundbeck’s chairman of the board, said the company is in “good position with solid financial momentum for years to come.” He praised the company’s move to shore up its executive management team with “a strong internal solution.” By adding members to its executive team, Rasmussen said it will allow the company to “to build on the already successful results we have achieved.”
“The board is grateful for the achievements made by both Kåre and Staffan. Together with the rest of the Executive Management team they have been instrumental in transitioning Lundbeck into a new era. On behalf of the Board of Directors I would like to thank them for their efforts and wish them success in their future endeavors. We will now continue our search for a new CEO for the company.”
Other changes to Lundbeck’s executive management team include:
- Lars Bang, executive vice president of supply operations and engineering
- Anders Gersel Pedersen, executive vice president of research and development
The Lundbeck board of directors is conducting an international search to find a new CEO.
Shares of H. Lundbeck A/S, which trades on the Copenhagen exchange, are down more than 2 percent this morning to 379.20 Kronor.
