Drugmaker GSK rings in more change as CFO heads for exit in 2019

Reuters  |  LONDON 

By Ben Hirschler

The former investment banker, who joined in 2011, will step down from the board in May 2019, the company said on Wednesday. As his departure is voluntary he will not receive any severance payment.

said it planned to look both internally and externally to identify a successor.

Dingemans' departure provides a further opportunity for to stamp her imprint on the group as she tries to boost sales and improve productivity in the core division.

Walmsley, who took over in April 2017, has already appointed a new head of in Luke Miels and a new in Hal Barron, as well as making Karenann Terrell head of digital operations, an area within Dingemans's orbit.

In his time at GSK, has helped oversee two transformational deals with - the first, in 2015, involving a major swap of assets and the second, in March, in which bought out of their joint venture for $13 billion.

Prior to joining the drugmaker, also helped as a Goldman in establishing GSK's joint venture in medicine with

Dingemans said he believed he was leaving at a time when it had established "strong foundations" to deliver improved financial performance.

The company has faced a difficult few years, marred by a lack of new blockbuster drugs emerging from its research labs, dwindling sales of its ageing lung drug and a corruption scandal in

But Walmsley said earlier in 2018 she was increasingly confident the company would be able to drive sales and profit growth over the next few years, helped by newer products such as its vaccine Shingrix.

Still, even with a renewed sense of urgency about R&D productivity, GSK's transformation will take time, with its next batch of new medicines not ready to reach the market before 2020.

Meanwhile, big challenges loom in two key areas, with a new drug from threatening the business and U.S. generic competition to possible by mid-2018.

(Additional reporting by in Bengaluru; Editing by and Susan Fenton)

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

First Published: Wed, May 09 2018. 17:58 IST