Abbvie executive Patrick Horber appointed as Novartis's President, International
Basel: Novartis has announced that Marie-France Tschudin, President, Innovative Medicines International and Chief Commercial Officer, has decided to leave the company and will step down from the Executive Committee of Novartis (ECN), effective September 15, after nearly seven years of commercial leadership at Novartis.
Patrick Horber, M.D., currently Senior Vice President and President, Immunology at AbbVie has been appointed as President, International, effective later this year, reporting to Vas Narasimhan, M.D., CEO of Novartis. Dr. Horber will become a member of the ECN. Mukul Mehta, Chief Financial Officer, International, will lead the unit ad-interim until Dr. Horber assumes the role.
“I leave Novartis with a strong sense of pride and accomplishment in how we have delivered on our purpose,” Marie-France Tschudin said. “My deep esteem and gratitude go to the Novartis colleagues around the globe for their trust, hard work, and relentless efforts in getting patients the treatments they need, faster.”
Vas Narasimhan said: “I want to thank Marie-France for her extraordinary leadership during her nearly seven years at Novartis. She has been integral to reimagining our commercial model and the way we deliver innovative medicines to patients around the world. Marie-France has led her teams to remarkable growth. The impact she has had on our business, on our people, and on patients around the world will be long-lasting. I wish her the very best as she pursues her next chapter.”
“I look forward to welcoming Patrick to Novartis. He is a proven leader with deep experience enabling commercial performance on a global scale, and I am confident he will catalyze our growth journey as Novartis enters our next chapter as a fully focused innovative medicines company.”
Patrick Horber said, "As a Swiss medical doctor, it is a privilege to join Novartis—a pillar of global biomedical innovation and scientific progress. I look forward to working alongside our teams to reimagine medicine for and with patients around the globe.”
Dr. Horber holds a M.D. from the University of Zurich. He is a native of Switzerland with over 20 years of experience in the biopharma sector and a deep understanding of the global pharmaceutical market. In his latest role as Senior Vice President and President, Immunology, at AbbVie, Dr. Horber was responsible for their Immunology Business Unit, leading the Global Strategy and U.S. execution including Global Commercial Development. Prior to this role he has served in a variety of leadership and general management positions in the US and Europe.
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