Andrew Witty, the new chief executive of giant GlaxoSmith-Kline, surveys the wreckage of the global financial meltdown and sees an upside. With pharmaceutical stocks at record lows, it's a good time to acquire biotech companies and other assets that could drive Glaxo's growth for years. Its midsize rival Wyeth is also on the prowl-but there's a difference. Faced with a shrinking market valuation, new CEO Bernard Poussot may have to bulk up to ward off larger predators.rnWitty and Poussot are two of seven new faces who have taken over at major pharmaceutical companies since 2006. It's amassive changing of the guard, and it comes at a time of both huge risks and irresistible opportunities. Drug companies have amassed astonishing hoards of cash, which places them in an enviable position as the world slides into recession. But they will have to dig deep into their stashes to buy the growth that has eluded them for the past decade. That means choos -ing targets that are most likely to create blockbuster drugs and to open up whole new areas of disease treatment.
展开▼
