Reporter |
Jiemian News learned on July 23 that Zhou Hong, President of Roche Pharmaceuticals China, will leave Roche, with her last working day scheduled for September 30 of this year. Following her departure, the position will be succeeded by Bian Xin, current Vice President of Market Access at Roche Pharmaceuticals China. Roche Pharmaceuticals China subsequently confirmed the above information to Jiemian News.
Zhou Hong has served as General Manager of Roche China since March 2015. Under her leadership, Roche China became the multinational pharmaceutical company with the highest number of shortlisted products and the steepest price reductions in the latest round of national drug price negotiations, while its performance growth once rebounded to double digits (19%). She relocated to Germany with her family at the age of 12 and resided there for over 30 years. Prior to joining Roche, Zhou Hong worked at Bayer for 17 years.
Roche did not disclose Zhou Hong's next career move.
Zhou Hong’s successor will be Bian Xin, currently Vice President of Market Access for Roche Pharma China. Bian Xin joined Roche Pharma in April 2019, succeeding Chen Wende, who was stepping down from the role of Vice President of Corporate Affairs, Market Access and Channel Management for Roche Pharma China. Notably, Chen’s predecessor, Luo Yongqing, left Roche to become Global Vice President and General Manager for China at Gilead.
Prior to joining Roche, Bian Xin served as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) of BeiGene and Co-Head of Commercial Operations for BeiGene China, primarily responsible for marketing, commercial strategy, new product launches, and business model innovation. Previously, she held marketing and sales management positions at another multinational company, Xian Janssen, for 14 years.
Bian Xin joined Xi'an Janssen in 2005 as Oncology Medical Affairs Manager, moved to the Marketing Department in 2007, was promoted to Associate Director of Oncology Marketing in December 2010, and to Director of Oncology Marketing in 2013. In October 2014, Bian Xin was appointed Head of the Primary Care Business Unit, and in April 2017, was promoted to Vice President of Xi'an Janssen and Head of the Innovative Products Business Unit.
On July 22, Roche released its 2021 half-year results, with global total revenue reaching CHF 30.7 billion, up 8% year-on-year. Of this, Pharmaceuticals revenue stood at CHF 21.7 billion, down 3% year-on-year, primarily due to ongoing biosimilar competition and the COVID-19 pandemic; Diagnostics revenue reached CHF 9.0 billion, up 51% year-on-year.
Of this, pharmaceutical revenue in the China region reached CHF 1.7 billion for the period, while diagnostics revenue stood at CHF 1.22 billion. Together, they accounted for 9.5% of its global total revenue.
Due to intense global competition from biosimilars, current-period revenues for Roche’s “legacy trio”—rituximab, bevacizumab, and trastuzumab—declined by 41%, 40%, and 35%, respectively; however, sales revenue from new products (launched after 2012) grew by 30% year-on-year, already accounting for over 50% of pharmaceutical business revenue, with first-half revenue reaching CHF 11 billion.
To address these challenges, Roche has also introduced a global transformation strategy. Measures implemented in its China region include adjustments to the sales model, such as establishing the "Product Line Model", "Regional Model", and "Ecosystem Model" in 2021, under which medical representatives' compensation is no longer directly tied to sales performance.