At year's end, major domestic pharmaceutical and biotech corporations are carrying out sweeping organizational reshuffles, including leadership changes, the creation of new divisions, and integrations.
The emergence of executives in their 30s and female executives—rare in the domestic pharmaceutical and biotech industry—stands out. Transitions from a single-CEO structure to a co-CEO system are also following. Each company said the decisions aim to boost efficiency and competitiveness.
First, Kwangdong Pharmaceutical adopted a co-CEO system for the first time since its founding. According to Kwangdong Pharmaceutical, on the 4th it appointed President Park Sang-young as the new CEO, establishing a "two-top system" with Chairman Choi Sung-won.
Chairman Choi is expected to lead strategy, new businesses, and research and development (R&D), while President Park is expected to spearhead overall management and strengthen execution.
Kwangdong Pharmaceutical faces strengthening profitability and improving the fundamentals of its pharmaceutical business institutional sector as key tasks.
Since Chairman Choi took office, the company has put forth "innovation, efficiency, and expansion" as its core management policy and has pushed to reinforce new pharmaceutical and healthcare businesses, including general and prescription drugs, moving beyond its traditional focus on oriental medicine and beverages such as Vita 500, Hovenia dulcis tea, corn silk tea, and Kyungokgo.
But recently, sales growth has slowed and profitability has declined. On a consolidation basis, Kwangdong Pharmaceutical's cumulative sales for the first to third quarters this year were 1.2474 trillion won, down 0.2% from the same period a year earlier, and operating profit was 18.7 billion won, down 20.15% from a year earlier.
A pharmaceutical industry official said, "For Kwangdong Pharmaceutical, financial improvement is the top priority," and added, "This year it has focused on reducing selling and administrative expenses, and it will likely wind down underperforming businesses and drive profitability improvements."
Other pharmaceutical and biotech companies also announced reorganizations into co-CEO systems.
JW Pharmaceutical appointed Ham Eun-kyung, CEO of JW Medical, as its new CEO, reorganizing from Shin Young-seop's single-CEO structure to a co-CEO system, and Lotte Biologics also shifted from James Park's single-CEO system to a co-CEO system with James Park and Shin Yoo-yeol.
CEO changes also followed. HLB Group Chairman Jin Yang-gon resigned as CEO of HLB in the regular executive reshuffle. Kim Hong-chul, CEO of HLB Innovation, has been named as the new CEO.
The promotion of executives in their 30s and female executives also drew attention in the industry. That is because most executives in the domestic pharmaceutical and biotech industry have been men in their 50s. Samsung Biologics and Samsung Bioepis both placed executives in their 30s and women at the forefront, aiming to recruit talent to strengthen global competitiveness.
Samsung Biologics' Kim Hee-jeong (born in 1981) was promoted to executive vice president as the youngest EVP, and Ahn So-yeon (born in 1988), in her 30s, became the youngest female executive since the company's founding.
Kim was recognized for establishing a stable DS (drug substance) production system and elevating the company's manufacturing capacity.
Ahn was highly regarded for leading efficiency in production processes and schedule management during the stabilization phase after the completion of Plant 4, achieving full operation early and laying a stable foundation for drug production.
Samsung Bioepis carried out promotions for six executives, including two executive vice presidents (Shin Dong-hoon, Shin Ji-eun) and four senior vice presidents (Son Sung-hoon, Ahn So-shin, Lee Nam-hoon, Jung Ui-han). In her 40s, Shin Ji-eun, born in 1981, became the youngest female executive. Among those promoted to senior vice president, Jung Ui-han, born in 1987, is the youngest executive at Bioepis.
Shin is viewed as strong in process development and technology transfer and was credited with enhancing product competitiveness by optimizing production processes and securing new partners. Jung was credited with laying the groundwork for sales growth by expanding the number of countries with marketing approval and contributing to shortening biosimilar development timelines and reducing costs.
Some analysis says recent organizational reshuffles and personnel moves at domestic pharmaceutical and biotech corporations reflect a shift from domestically focused businesses to globally oriented ones.
An executive at a global big pharma said, "In the global pharmaceutical industry in the United States and Europe, executives in their 30s and 40s and female executives are not uncommon," adding, "As Korean corporations seek growth breakthroughs in markets beyond their home country, it is a signal that corporate structures and the profile of talent are changing."
Jung Hyun-jin, Country HR Lead at Bayer Korea, said, "Corporate organizations survive only if they learn and execute faster," adding, "Many global pharmaceutical corporations are breaking away from vertical and closed organizational structures to foster talent with growth potential and expertise and to focus on innovating."