Teva Pharmaceutical announced its Board of Directors has named Kåre Schultz to become the company’s President and Chief Executive Officer. Schultz will succeed Dr. Yitzhak Peterburg, who will continue to serve as Interim Chief Executive Officer until Schultz joins the company. Today’s leadership announcement represents the successful completion of the global search process to identify the best leader for the company and was executed by the Teva Board of Directors, with the assistance of Heidrick & Struggles. Mr. Schultz will be relocating to Israel and based out of the Company’s Petah Tikva headquarters.
Schultz most recently served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of H. Lundbeck A/S, where he is credited with leading restructuring initiatives and launching a robust turnaround strategy focused on driving a sustainable global cost structure and operational model. As a result of his leadership, the company is on track to achieve all-time high revenue and earnings.
“With extensive global pharmaceutical experience, a strong track record executing corporate turnaround strategies, driving growth and international expansion at low incremental cost and delivering on promises to shareholders, as well as a commitment to a culture of compliance, Kåre is the right leader to take Teva to the next level,” said Dr. Sol J. Barer, Chairman of Teva’s Board of Directors. “Kåre has deep insight into the global pharmaceutical industry and a keen knowledge of the generic and specialty drug markets. His proven strategic, financial and operational capabilities and his strong commitment to growth will enhance value for all stakeholders and position Teva for long-term success. He brings a strong sense of corporate citizenship, and his disciplined commitment to excellence makes him a clear professional and cultural fit with our company. We are pleased to welcome a world-class leader of Kåre’s stature to Teva and look forward to working closely with him to build the Teva of the future for shareholders, employees and patients around the world.”
Prior to joining Lundbeck, Schultz worked for nearly three decades at Novo Nordisk, where he served in a number of leadership roles, including Chief Operating Officer, Vice President in Product Supply and Director of Product Planning and Customer Services in the Diabetes Care Division. At Novo Nordisk, Schultz played a major role in modernizing the company’s large scale biologic production and leading the company’s expansion into the US and Chinese markets.
In addition to his time at Novo Nordisk, Schultz has held positions at McKinsey and Anderson Consulting. In these roles, he developed a unique global perspective on the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries, expanded his deep financial acumen, demonstrated a commitment to strong compliance principles and enforcement and oversaw business operations and teams across Europe and North America and the Middle East.
Schultz serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Royal Unibrew A/S, as a member of the Board of Directors of LEGO A/S and as a member of the Board of Directors of Bitten og Mads Clausens Fond, the holding vehicle for Danfoss A/S.
He holds a master’s degree in Economics from the University of Copenhagen.