Pfizer lures first chief marketing officer from Verily

Pfizer is hiring an Alphabet life sciences executive as its first global chief marketing officer, the third major addition to its senior ranks this year.

Drew Panayiotou, chief marketing officer of Alphabet’s life sciences research arm Verily, will join Pfizer on Sept. 19. He will be responsible for building commercial infrastructure including “new innovative engagement channels, tools, and digital solutions,” Pfizer said in an emailed statement. He will report to Angela Hwang, head of Pfizer’s biopharmaceuticals unit.

The announcement comes about six months after two retirements led to a reshuffling of Pfizer’s senior ranks, amid a surge in revenue to record levels from sales of its COVID-19 vaccine and antiviral drug. Pfizer hired William Pao as chief development officer from Roche in February and David Denton as chief financial officer from Lowe’s in April.

Pfizer is familiar with Verily through a partnership it, along with three other pharmas, signed with the technology company in 2019 to tap its data tools for clinical studies.

Panayiotou was also the first chief marketing officer at Verily. He has more than 30 years experience in marketing, previously working at Johnson & Johnson, Coca-Cola and Disney, among others. At Pfizer, he joins a company whose business dwarfs most others in the pharma sector, after its first-half revenues surged by 60% and are on track to reach about $100 billion for the first time.

“Drew’s insights and diverse thinking will help us elevate the cutting-edge customer channels, skills and capabilities we need to deliver” new medicines to patients, Hwang said in a LinkedIn post.

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