Poussot Tapped As Wyeth CEO – Inherits Full Pipeline, Takeover Concerns

With the appointment of 20-year veteran Bernard Poussot as CEO, Wyeth is following a traditional approach to chief exec succession -avoiding drama by selecting a well-groomed insider with the standard pedigree from the business and marketing sides of the operation.

The firm announced the selection of Poussot on Sept. 27. Effective Jan 1, 2008, Poussot will replace Wyeth Chairman and CEO Robert Essner, who will continue as chairman of the Board of Directors during a transitional period.

Poussot joined the firm in 1986 - after holding marketing positions at Searle and Merck Sharp & Dohme - as Deputy General Manager of Wyeth France. From there he moved on, becoming head of Wyeth Europe in 1991 and Exec VP-Wyeth-Ayerst International in 1993. Poussot became president of the corporation's global pharmaceutical division in 1996, was promoted to president of the worldwide pharmaceutical business in 1997, and was elected exec VP in 2002, when he took on responsibility for the R&D group.

The exec is currently responsible for overseeing Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, R&D, Consumer Healthcare and Fort Dodge Animal Health. He will serve as COO, a position he has held since January 2007, as well as President and Vice Chairman of Wyeth, until he takes over the CEO role.

Essner has served as Wyeth's CEO since May 2001 and Chairman since 2003. He joined the firm (then called American Home Products) in 1989 as Senior VP-Sales and Marketing for Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories. He rose through the ranks, eventually succeeding CEO Jack Stafford, who had filled the position since 1986, after a period marked by failed merger negotiations and product withdrawals (¹ (Also see "American Home Products CEO-Designate Essner Will Succeed Stafford May 1" - Pink Sheet, 12 Mar, 2001.), p. 18).

Poussot's appointment comes at a time when there are rumors that Wyeth is a potential acquisition target. The firm has had mixed success this year. It reported strong growth for its pharmaceutical products for the first half of the year (11 percent) with a 27 percent increase in revenue for biologics after the second quarter, leading the company to raise its earnings guidance for 2007. Wyeth also successfully resolved manufacturing problems at its Guayama, Puerto Rico plant in May, which could have created difficulties for upcoming launches.

But Wyeth has also had a spate of regulatory setbacks - in particular, delays for its high-profile menopause-targeted therapies. The firm received "approvable" letters for its novel SERM Viviant (bazedoxifene) and for its Effexor XR follow-on Pristiq (desvenlafaxine) (² (Also see "Wyeth’s Hot Flash: Pristiq “Approvable” Delays Vasomotor Claim At Least A Year" - Pink Sheet, 30 Jul, 2007.), p. 11). Wyeth also received a "not approvable" letter for its atypical antipsychotic bifeprunox in August (³ 'The Pink Sheet' Aug. 13, 2007, In Brief).

So far the firm has received only two significant approvals this year - the continuous oral contraceptive Lybrel and renal cell carcinoma treatment Torisel (temsirolimus), which launched in June and July, respectively. Those are the first of seven launches Wyeth has planned for the next 18 months, creating an enviable situation for Poussot.

Poussot is assuming leadership at a time when the firm's pipeline is flush. Currently, Wyeth's active projects include 14 programs in Phase II, 18 in Phase III and at least five products under review at FDA. Wyeth also is in the forefront of R&D innovation, with its "Project Springboard" initiative, "learn and confirm" models and leadership in adaptive clinical trial design (⁴ (Also see "Wyeth’s Successful R&D Renovation: Neuroscience Shows Early Returns" - Pink Sheet, 12 Feb, 2007.), p. 10).

Wyeth has a promising vaccines business as well, at a time when the vaccines market is once again an attractive area for big pharma (⁵ (Also see "Wyeth’s Vaccines Pipeline Is Stacked With Blockbuster Potential" - Pink Sheet, 17 Sep, 2007.), p. 9). And the firm has invested in biologics, providing Wyeth the diverse portfolio that is the aim of many modern biopharma companies.

Wyeth has also embraced new ways of doing business is with its sales force. The company was proactive in addressing sales organization issues, redesigning its selling model in 2005 to be more customer-centric, putting less emphasis on repetitive visits by a large field force, and adding a part-time component. Now, having avoided the deep cuts other companies were forced to take, Wyeth touts its flexible organization.

Possibly through timely reorganizations of its R&D business and sales force, Wyeth has managed to avoid the major restructurings that other big biopharma firms - like Pfizer, J&J and Amgen - have had to undertake. However, the promising pipeline and lean sales organization may just serve to make Wyeth a more attractive target.

- Jamie Hammon ([email protected])