Jimenez Appointment No Surprise for PharmaVOICE

Marah Walsh

Jimenez carries many successes from his CPG career and his time at Novartis into his new position.
It doesn’t surprise anyone at PharmaVOICE that Mr. Jimenez will take over for Daniel Vasella as head of Novartis; we’ve been anticipating the move ever since we interviewed Mr. Jimenez for our Bio section in the October 2008 issue. Features Editor Kim Ribbink interviewed Mr. Jimenez, and wrote an indepth article about his vision for Novartis, his focus on the consumer, and his ability to steer the company towards a more commercial and streamlined model. Mr. Jimenez told PharmaVOICE back in October ’08 that in order for Novartis to prosper, it would require new ways of thinking and the adoption of best practices from other industries. Mr. Jimenez parlayed this into a four-step plan.
Step One: Change the existing functionally driven development model to a cross-functional model. The result has been the creation of small, autonomous, development teams, led by a global head, for each development project.
Step Two: Change the commercial model. Jimenez shifted the majority focus from physicians to insurance companies and payers.
Step Three: Reducing non value adding costs by simplifying and delayering business activities. Step Four: Greater investment in emerging markets through increased sales, medical affairs, and development efforts.
Jimenez says he draws on his competitive swimming days at Stanford for inspiration. “Setting a goal, working very hard, and celebrating the success is imprinted in me and it’s the way I run my business at Novartis.”

To read more about Mr. Jimenez and his accomplishments, download article now!
http://www.pharmalinx.com/pharmavoice/Jimenez