31 October 2019 - Deborah Wilkes
Galenica Group will have a new chief executive officer from 1 April 2020 following the early retirement of Jean-Claude Clémençon.
The Swiss company has recruited Marc Werner, a member of the group executive board at telecommunications firm Swisscom, as its new chief executive officer.
Werner became a member of Swisscom’s group executive board in 2014 and was made head of the company’s Sales & Services division in 2016. He has also worked for Minolta.
Galenica said Werner was an “experienced and entrepreneurial leader with a high degree of digital affinity as well as a strong focus on market developments, trends and customer needs”.
“Werner knows the Swiss market and the various cultures,” added Galenica. “He is a leader for whom people come first and who has proven in his previous roles that he is able to inspire large teams and give an organisation focus and clout as a manager.”
Commenting on Clémençon’s departure, Galenica’s board said it “greatly regrets” his decision to take early retirement.
Clémençon joined Galenica in 1995 and has been chief executive officer since April 2017.
In the first half of 2019, Galenica reported sales of CHF1.60 billion (USD1.62 billion), representing a rise of 2.2% compared to the same period a year earlier (click here to read the News story). The Swiss company operates the largest network of pharmacies in Switzerland – including Amavita, MediService and Sun Store – as well as Verfora Consumer Healthcare.