17th Mar 2016 16:49
LONDON (Alliance News) - Drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline PLC on Thursday said Chief Executive Andrew Witty will retire from his role in March 2017 after more than three decades working for the company.
The FTSE 100-listed group said a formal search for his successor will now begin, with internal and external candidates to be considered.
Witty has been the chief executive of Glaxo since 2008 but has worked for the group since 1985, when he joined as a management trainee.
"GSK is a very special company with an inspiring mission and many dedicated people. By next year, I will have been CEO for nearly ten years and I believe this will be the right time for a new leader to take over," Witty said.
His departure had been well-flagged, with the Financial Times reporting at the end of February that Glaxo was gearing up to start the formal search for his successor.
The move also comes after Neil Woodford, the prominent fund manager and head of Woodford Investment Management, had called for a break-up of Glaxo in a BBC radio interview in January.
Woodford repeated on Thursday his call for a "radical restructuring" of the business. Speaking to Sky News, Woodford expressed a strong preference for an external candidate to fill Witty's shoes, arguing Glaxo needs a "fresh pair of eyes".
Glaxo Chairman Philip Hampton said: "Andrew's retirement next year will represent the culmination of 32 years of service and leadership to GSK and the industry. We will thank Andrew more formally for his tremendous dedication and contribution next year."
Hampton added: "In the meantime, we will now start a formal process to appoint his successor, whilst also ensuring the group remains focussed on execution of its strategy to drive growth and performance."
Separately Thursday, Glaxo also said its Advair Diskus asthma treatment met its primary endpoint in a study on children aged 4-11 with asthma.
The study was undertaken to demonstrate the efficacy of a combination of LABA, salmeterol, and the inhaled corticosteroid, fluticasone propionate, against a fluticasone propionate monotherapy.
The study found a twice-daily dose of the combination treatment show no inferiority in reducing the risk of asthma-related events to the monotherapy.
Glaxo shares closed down 1.3% to 1,393.14 pence on Thursday.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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