Merck Sharp and Dohme names new UK managing director

Merck Sharp and Dohme has announced the appointment of Mike Nally as its new managing director for the UK and Ireland, effective as of January 1st 2014.

Mr Nally is currently employed as the company's managing director in Sweden and has been credited with helping its operations in the Scandinavian country to become more customer-centric and receptive to the dynamic, payer-based environment.

He has been appointed as the successor to Deepak Khanna, who is taking on a new senior vice-president role within Merck Sharp and Dohme, which will see him heading up the company's oncology efforts across Europe from the start of next year.

It was also announced earlier this month that Mr Khanna will be stepping down from his position as president of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry in April 2014. He will be succeeded in this post by Pfizer's UK managing director Jonathan Emms.

MSD operates two main sites in the UK, with headquarters and pharmaceutical research and development laboratories in Hertfordshire and a manufacturing facility in Northumberland. It is one of the largest healthcare companies in the world.