AbbVie announces its new CEO

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AbbVie’s current President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) is set to replace the company’s existing CEO later this year.

Robert Michael will become AbbVie’s new CEO on 1 July 2024. Richard Gonzalez will retire as the company’s CEO to become Executive Chairman, having served as the company’s CEO since its launch in 2013, AbbVie noted.

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Robert has had “a tremendous impact” on AbbVie, according to Richard Gonzalez.

“From establishing our financial planning organisation, to the development of our diversified business strategy, to successfully navigating the end of exclusivity for Humira in the US, Rob has been integral to AbbVie’s impact since inception. Rob has also played an important role in key business development opportunities that have been critical to delivering on our long-term growth strategy, including the acquisitions of Allergan and ImmunoGen and the pending Cerevel Therapeutics transaction,” he added.

The organisation’s $10 billion acquisition of ImmunoGen will give AbbVie rights to the first antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) approved in ovarian cancer.

Highlighting Richard’s years of service at AbbVie, Glenn Tilton, lead independent director of the company’s board of directors, noted that in the past 11 years, the firm has “created over $250 billion in market valuation [and] invested over $60 billion in R&D and nearly tripled annual revenue.”

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Robert Michael

Robert is the current President and Chief Operating Officer of AbbVie and a member of its Executive Leadership Team. Prior to his present role, Robert served as vice chairman and president at AbbVie.

The firm explained that he began his career at Abbott, where he served as a member of the financial development programme, then in roles such as division controller. 

When AbbVie became an independent company in 2013, Robert established and led the company’s first financial planning organisation as Vice President, AbbVie financial planning and analysis.

Robert’s other roles at AbbVie include:

• President and Chief Operating Officer in 2023
• Vice Chairman and President in 2022
• Vice Chairman of finance and commercial operations in 2021
• Chief Financial Officer in 2018.

Richard Gonzalez

Richard Gonzalez is the company’s chairman of the board and CEO. Richard has facilitated AbbVie securing a market capitalisation increase from $54 billion in 2013 to over $300 billion in 2024. The company highlighted that its revenue has nearly tripled and adjusted, diluted EPS has grown from $2.93 to $11.11.*

Prior to transitioning to AbbVie, Richard served as President and Chief Operating Officer at Abbott. He also held various senior leadership positions at Abbott, including President and Chief Operating Officer of the Medical Products Group and Senior Vice President and President of the former Hospital Products Division, according to AbbVie.

*AbbVie stated: This statistic reflects full-year non-GAAP measure adjusted for specified items, including intangible asset amortization and impairment, change in fair value of contingent consideration and other adjustments. 2013 diluted EPS was $2.56, and 2023 diluted EPS was $2.72.