It's been an eventful seven months at Biogen Inc., one of the last free-standing big biotechnology companies. Since taking the helm in July 2010, newly minted CEO George Scangos, PhD, has radically restructured the biotech, jettisoning R&D initiatives in oncology and cardiology, as well as eliminating the company's San Diego site, culling $300 million in costs in the process. He's also made big changes to his top management team, hiring two former CEOs with decades of biotech experience: Doug Williams, PhD, most recently of ZymoGenetics Inc., as his head of R&D, and Steven Holtzman, formerly of Infinity Pharmaceuticals Inc., to take over the newly created role of EVP of corporate development.
Biogen Idec Charts A New Course
Thanks to a November restructuring that refocused the company around its historic strength in neurology and the hiring of two critical executives, Biogen believes it can grow beyond its warhorses Avonex and Tysabri
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