Grünenthal appoints Gabriel Baertschi as Chairman of the Corporate Executive Board and Chief Executive Officer effective October 1, 2016.
Swiss native Gabriel Baertschi follows Prof. Dr. Eric-Paul Pâques who retires after 23 years with the company.
Aachen, Germany, June 7, 2016 – Grünenthal Group today announced that its Supervisory Board has named Gabriel Baertschi to become Grünenthal’s new CEO as of October 1, 2016. Gabriel Baertschi will join Grünenthal from AstraZeneca, a global, science-led biopharmaceutical business where he currently serves as country president for Japan. He succeeds Prof. Dr. Eric-Paul Pâques, who has been the CEO of the Grünenthal Group. Grünenthal is an independent, family-owned, international research-based pharmaceutical company headquartered in Aachen, Germany with affiliates in Europe, Latin America and the U.S. In 2015, Grünenthal achieved revenues of € 1.2 bn.
Gabriel Baertschi has more than 17 years of international experience in the pharmaceutical industry, including the last three years as country president for Japan when he was responsible for an organization of over USD 3 billion in sales and over 3,000 employees across R&D, Manufacturing and Commercial functions. Under Gabriel Baertschi tenure AstraZeneca moved from the 12th to the 6th best-selling pharma company in Japan, and significantly shortened drug development timelines. Prior to taking up his current role in 2013, he served as country president for Germany and earlier in his career served as country manager in various emerging markets.
“I am honored to have been elected as Grünenthal’s CEO. It is a privilege to be part of an organization that delivers high quality products and innovative solutions to the patients”, said Gabriel Baertschi. “Grünenthal is an organization led by a purpose: to bring true benefits to patients by being an entrepreneurial specialist. I am deeply committed to building long-term value for patients, clinicians, and our partners together with a very experienced team at Grünenthal.”
Gabriel Baertschi succeeds Prof. Dr. Eric-Paul Pâques who will retire at the end of 2016 after 23 years with the company. During the last quarter of 2016, both Prof. Dr. Eric-Paul Pâques and Gabriel Baertschi will work together to ensure a smooth transition. Under Pâques’ leadership, Grünenthal has significantly expanded its global business, especially in Latin America, Europe as well as the US by bringing new innovative treatments to market, and sharpened its strategy with regards to R&D and partnering and growing new promising business areas like the hospital business.
"I am extremely proud to have worked with truly dedicated and experienced colleagues at Grünenthal. We all share a common vision of bringing benefit to the patients and help them to improve their quality of life. I wish Gabriel Baertschi great success in the next phase of Grünenthal's journey," said Prof. Dr. Eric-Paul Pâques.
Dr. Wilhelm Moll, chairman of the Supervisory Board, commented: “The Supervisory Board has conducted a thorough search process. We are delighted that Gabriel Baertschi will join Grünenthal Group as CEO. His deep experience in growing the business and developing the organisation in major developed and emerging markets will be a great asset for Grünenthal. He joins us at an exciting time when our strategy of expanding our strategic partnerships in Research and Development in Europe as well as in Latin America are accelerating our global growth. We would like to thank Prof. Dr. Pâques for his outstanding leadership, integrity and extraordinary personal commitment for the future of a successful Grünenthal.”
About Grünenthal
The Grünenthal Group is an independent, family-owned, international research-based pharmaceutical company headquartered in Aachen, Germany. We are an entrepreneurial specialist delivering true benefits to patients. By sustainably investing in research and development above the industrial average, we are committing to innovation in order to treat unmet medical needs and bring value-adding products to markets. Grünenthal is a fully integrated research & development company with a long track record of bringing innovative pain treatments and state-of-the-art technologies to patients.
Altogether, the Grünenthal Group is present in 32 countries with affiliates in Europe, Latin America and the US. Grünenthal products are sold in more than 155 countries and approx. 5,300 employees are working for the Grünenthal Group worldwide. In 2015, Grünenthal achieved revenues of € 1.2 bn. More information: www.grunenthal.com.
7 June 2016
