Xi'an Janssen Appoints Cherry Huang as New China President Amid Strategic Portfolio Shift

Sep 08, 2023 17:30 CST Updated 17:30

Xian Janssen

Pharmaceutical R&D and Manufacturer

According to a report by "Pharmaceutical Representative" on September 5, Xian Janssen announced that Cherry Huang, Regional Managing Director of North Asia at Janssen Pharmaceuticals and CEO of Korea, will become the new president of Xian Janssen, leading the development of Janssen Pharmaceuticals' business in China.

Former President of Xian Janssen China, Zheng LeiLeft Johnson & Johnson to seek external development opportunities.

In addition, the leadership team of Janssen China has also made some adjustments:

Connie Cao Appointed as Head of Human Resources;
Fangyue Pan will serve as the head of the Immunotherapy Business Department;
He Xuzheng will transition to lead the neurology, infectious diseases, and pulmonary hypertension businesses;
Chen Jian will take on additional responsibilities for market access and government affairs, in addition to his current role as head of the oncology business unit.

According to publicly available information, Huang Chen graduated from the finance program at Shanghai Jiao Tong University and later earned an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. After graduating in 1997, she joined Johnson & Johnson as a financial analyst. Between 2011 and 2015, she served as the financial head of Xian Janssen, the senior financial director for Southeast Asia at Johnson & Johnson, and the Chief Financial Officer for the Asia-Pacific region at Janssen Pharmaceuticals. On May 25, 2021, Huang Chen was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of Janssen Pharmaceutical's South Korea branch, while also overseeing business operations in Hong Kong and Taiwan, effective June 1, 2021.

Zheng Lei holds a Bachelor's degree in Engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and a Master's degree in Business Administration from the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago. He joined Johnson & Johnson in 2002 and has held several key positions during his tenure, including Head of the Oncology and Immunology Division, and Head of Operations for Janssen Pharmaceutical in South Korea, Hong Kong, China, and Taiwan, China. On April 1, 2021, Zheng Lei was appointed President of Xian Janssen Pharmaceutical Ltd.

Janssen mainly focuses on R&D pipelines for immune diseases, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, among which the infectious diseases and vaccines business primarily concentrates on HIV, hepatitis B, as well as Ebola, Zika, and tuberculosis (TB).

According to Johnson & Johnson's 2023 Q2 financial report, total revenue increased by 7.5% year-over-year, reaching $25.5 billion. Janssen Pharmaceuticals grew by 3.8% year-over-year, reaching $13.7 billion (or 8.9% growth if COVID-19 vaccine sales are excluded).

Previously, according to foreign media reports on August 23, Janssen planned to close most of its infectious disease and vaccine departments located in Leiden, the Netherlands. It was reported that Janssen would only retain the development of E. coli preventive vaccines and continue to provide AIDS products, exiting all others. Parent company Johnson & Johnson hopes Janssen will focus more on new treatments for cancer, heart, and arterial diseases.

In Leiden, the Netherlands, Janssen Pharmaceuticals has 2,500 employees, of which a quarter (approximately 625 people) belong to the infectious diseases and vaccines department.

Since the first quarter of this year, Johnson & Johnson has eliminated seven infectious disease projects, most of which were for the treatment of hepatitis B, and all these pipelines were under Janssen.

References:

[1] Medical Representative: "Huang Chen Returns, Xian Janssen Appoints New President!"

[2] Pharmaceutical Representative: "CEO of Janssen Pharmaceuticals Korea Confirmed!"

[3] Pharmaceutical Representative: "Xian Janssen Appoints New President"

[4] China Times: "Cutting Pipelines for Self-Rescue: Major Layoffs by Well-Known Pharmaceutical Companies Such as Johnson & Johnson and Bayer – Will It Affect the Chinese Market?"

[5] Frontier of Cell and Gene Therapy: "Impact on More Than 600 Employees, Janssen to Shut Down Most of Infectious Diseases and Vaccines Departments"

Source: Siqi Club

Compiled by: Nicole

Editor: Adam

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