George B. Abercrombie

Biography

George B. Abercrombie was appointed to the Board in October 2011. Mr. Abercrombie has over 30 years of experience as a business leader in the pharmaceutical industry. He most recently served from 2001 to 2009 as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Hoffmann-La Roche Inc., a pharmaceutical company, where he was responsible leading operations in both the U.S. and Canada. During his tenure, Mr. Abercrombie also served as a member of the Roche Pharmaceutical Executive Committee, which was responsible for developing and implementing global strategy for the Pharmaceuticals Division. In 1993, Mr. Abercrombie joined Glaxo Wellcome Inc. as Vice President and General Manager of the Glaxo Pharmaceuticals Division, and was later promoted to Senior Vice President, U.S. Commercial Operations. Prior to joining Glaxo, he spent over ten years at Merck & Co., Inc., where he gained experience in sales and marketing, executive sales management and business development. Mr. Abercrombie began his career as a pharmacist after receiving a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and later earned an MBA from Harvard University. Mr. Abercrombie currently holds the position of Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer at Innoviva, Inc., a publicly traded bio-pharmaceutical asset management company. He also serves on the Board of Brickell Biotech, a private pharmaceutical company. Additionally, he is an Adjunct Professor at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and a board member of the North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation. Mr. Abercrombie’s executive experience in the pharmaceutical industry and management positions with major pharmaceutical companies provide an excellent background for service on the Board.

Research Interest

George B. Abercrombie was appointed to the Board in October 2011. Mr. Abercrombie has over 30 years of experience as a business leader in the pharmaceutical industry. He most recently served from 2001 to 2009 as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Hoffmann-La Roche Inc., a pharmaceutical company, where he was responsible leading operations in both the U.S. and Canada. During his tenure, Mr. Abercrombie also served as a member of the Roche Pharmaceutical Executive Committee, which was responsible for developing and implementing global strategy for the Pharmaceuticals Division. In 1993, Mr. Abercrombie joined Glaxo Wellcome Inc. as Vice President and General Manager of the Glaxo Pharmaceuticals Division, and was later promoted to Senior Vice President, U.S. Commercial Operations. Prior to joining Glaxo, he spent over ten years at Merck & Co., Inc., where he gained experience in sales and marketing, executive sales management and business development. Mr. Abercrombie began his career as a pharmacist after receiving a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and later earned an MBA from Harvard University. Mr. Abercrombie currently holds the position of Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer at Innoviva, Inc., a publicly traded bio-pharmaceutical asset management company. He also serves on the Board of Brickell Biotech, a private pharmaceutical company. Additionally, he is an Adjunct Professor at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and a board member of the North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation. Mr. Abercrombie’s executive experience in the pharmaceutical industry and management positions with major pharmaceutical companies provide an excellent background for service on the Board.