Today on 20th February 2024, AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV) announced that Robert A. Michael, the company’s president and chief operating officer, has been unanimously chosen by the board of directors to take over as CEO in place of Richard A. Gonzalez. With effect from July 1, 2024, Mr. Gonzalez, who has been the company’s CEO since its founding in 2013, will step down and take on the position of executive chairman of the board of directors. Furthermore, starting of July 1, 2024, the board has appointed Mr. Michael to the position of member of the board of directors.
“On behalf of AbbVie’s board, I am extremely excited that Rob has agreed to serve as AbbVie’s next CEO,” said Richard A. Gonzalez, chairman and chief executive officer, AbbVie. “As a key member of the Executive Leadership Team, he has had a tremendous impact on AbbVie. From establishing our financial planning organization, to the development of our diversified business strategy, to successfully navigating the end of exclusivity for Humira in the U.S., 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. I have known and worked with Rob for many years, and he has the experience, leadership capabilities and strategic vision to accelerate AbbVie’s success well into the future.”
“The board and I have been planning for a seamless CEO succession for some time. Now is the opportune time to hand the CEO role over to Rob,” continued Mr. Gonzalez. “The business is performing very well and is in a strong position for the long term. Our pipeline contains multiple promising candidates to sustain our future strong growth. It has been a privilege and immensely gratifying to serve with all my AbbVie colleagues for the past 11 years growing AbbVie into what it is today, and I look forward to continuing to work with Rob as executive chairman of the board.”
“The AbbVie board recognizes that CEO succession planning is one of our most important responsibilities,” said Glenn Tilton, lead independent director, AbbVie’s board of directors. “The company has been planning for the eventual succession for a long time and has been thoughtful and deliberate to ensure the right plan was in place for a potential successor. The board conducted a thorough process to identify the right leader for AbbVie’s next chapter. It is a testament to the strength and depth of AbbVie’s management team that we have the ideal internal candidate in Rob to assume the CEO position. The board has the highest confidence in Rob and looks forward to working with him to create meaningful value for our shareholders and all our stakeholders.”
“All of us at AbbVie owe Rick an enormous debt of gratitude for his remarkable leadership over the past 11 years,” continued Mr. Tilton. “Under his stewardship, AbbVie has generated a total return to shareholders of more than 700%, created over $250 billion in market valuation, grown our annual patient base to more than 60 million people in 175 countries, invested over $60 billion in R&D and nearly tripled annual revenue. We are thrilled that we will continue to benefit from Rick’s experience, intellect and integrity on AbbVie’s board of directors.”
“I am honored to assume the CEO role for AbbVie, and I am excited about our company’s bright future,” said Robert A. Michael, president and chief operating officer, AbbVie. “Rick has been a tremendous leader for AbbVie and mentor to me personally. His legacy at AbbVie will be felt for years to come. I would like to thank the board for expressing its confidence in me, and I look forward to working with Rick and the entire board to deliver results for our patients, our employees, our shareholders and our communities.”
Robert A. Michael:
AbbVie’s president and chief operating officer is Robert A. Michael. As a member of AbbVie’s Executive Leadership Team, Mr. Michael is in charge of the company’s business growth, corporate strategy, corporate operations, corporate human resources, and global commercial operations. He was president and vice chairman before that.
With 31 years of experience, Mr. Michael has held leadership positions in a variety of industries, including diabetes care, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and diagnostics. He started off in the Abbott financial development program and worked his way up to positions including division controller for the nutrition supply chain, division controller for molecular diagnostics, and more.
Upon AbbVie’s separation from Abbott in 2013, Mr. Michael established and led the company’s first financial planning organization as vice president, AbbVie financial planning and analysis. He then held a series of leadership roles of increasing responsibility including vice president, controller for commercial operations; vice president, treasurer; and vice president, corporate controller. He was appointed chief financial officer in 2018, vice chairman, finance and commercial operations in 2021, vice chairman and president in 2022 and president and chief operating officer in 2023.
