Transforming pharma leadership

The fast-changing and pressurized environment in which they operate means pharma companies must now take a more aggressive approach to adopting new leadership structures, writes Waseem Noor, a consultant at the executive search firm Russell Reynolds Associates, in an Expert View piece.

The leadership profile of the typical pharma company in the 1980s was clear – it was built on the direction of the chief operating officer, chief financial officer, chief strategy and head of research and development (R&D), supported by the work of regional and business unit heads, and steered by the chief executive.

Tighter industry regulation in the 1990s sparked the first shake-up in pharma leadership, when specialists began joining traditional managers at the helm of the pharma company through direct recruitment or internal promotion.