BioCentury
ARTICLE | Strategy

Sanofi's post-reconstruction era

How research head Yong-Jun Liu is capstone to Zerhouni's R&D overhaul at Sanofi

June 9, 2016 7:00 AM UTC

Five years after taking the helm as Sanofi's president of global R&D, Elias Zerhouni is rounding out his strategy to revamp the division and rebuild the pipeline with the appointment of Yong-Jun Liu as the new global head of research. Zerhouni wants to capitalize on Liu's deep background in immuno-oncology and strength in biologics to help the company catch up with its competitors and continue the transition to other modalities from its historical small molecule bias.

Zerhouni spent the first years of his tenure on structural changes that involved consolidating the fragmented research centers, trimming the pipeline, and laying the groundwork for tapping external innovation through academic alliances...