Japanese pharmaceutical company Astellas has promoted Bernhardt Zeiher to the position of Executive Vice President, Global Development.
In addition, the company has appointed Jeannette Barrett as Vice President and Head of Medical Excellence, Global Medical Affairs.
In his new role, Zeiher will take responsibility for Global Development Operations and Global Clinical Pharmacology and Exploratory Development (GCPED), in addition to his responsibility as therapeutic area Head of Immunology, Infectious Disease, Transplant, Central Nervous System and Pain.
As Head of Medical Excellence, a new department within the Global Medical Affairs organisation at Astellas, Barrett will be responsible for supporting Astellas' medical affairs activities globally by providing the tools, processes, systems and infrastructure they need to ensure transparency, operational consistency, limit risk and improve compliance.
Zeiher has more than 15 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry and most recently came from Pfizer, where he was VP of the inflammation/immunology therapeutic area.
Barrett has held a variety of positions for more than 20 years in the areas of medical affairs, regulatory affairs and drug safety with several global pharmaceutical companies, including Pfizer, where she spent 16 years.