Sanofi names Olivier Brandicourt as next chief executive officer

Sanofi has announced the appointment of Olivier Brandicourt as its new chief executive officer (CEO), effective as of April 2nd 2015.

Mr Brandicourt can boast 28 years of global experience in the pharmaceutical industry, most recently serving as chairman of the board of management of Bayer HealthCare and member of the executive council of Bayer.

His former employers also include Parke-Davis/Warner-Lambert and Pfizer, with positions encompassing several senior positions in Europe, Canada and the US. Over the course of his career, he has led the launch of numerous new medicines and completed several strategic acquisitions and integrations.

Serge Weinberg, chairman of the board of directors at Sanofi, said: "Olivier Brandicourt's strong experience combined with his international profile, deep knowledge of US and emerging healthcare markets, and his capability to unite teams will provide new dynamism to Sanofi's strategy of diversification and innovation."

Previous chief executive Christopher Viehbacher left Sanofi shortly after the announcement of the firm's Q3 2014 results last October. Since then, Mr Weinberg has been filling this role on an interim basis.