Takeda Pharmaceuticals President Doug Cole Quits
November 21, 2014
By Krystle Vermes, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
After 22 years with Takeda Pharmaceuticals USA, President Doug Cole announced today that he would be leaving the biopharmaceutical company. Cole, 47, says that he has at a point in his career where he would “like to explore his options,” according to Crain’s Chicago Business.
Thus far, Cole has not been able to be reached for comment. The Deerfield, Ill., company has produced more than $2.1 billion in revenue in 2013, and it has approximately 2,700 employees. Cole was initially hired as a sales rep back in 1992, and he was appointed vice president of sales for a joint venture between Takeda and Abbott Laboratories back in 2002.
For the fiscal year ending in March 2013, Takeda Pharmaceutical has generated $16.6 billion in net sales. Products included vaccines and treatments for diseases including cancer and diabetes.
Cole intends to remain at the company until the end of the fiscal year in March, or until a successor has been named.
Making Investments for the Future
In the beginning of October, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited , based in Japan, announced that it would be investing in Vaccine Safe Co., which was established in August as a subsidiary of the Alfresa Corporation. The goal was to assist with the widespread adoption of Vaccine Safe Co.’s vaccination management system.
“In recent years, a large number of vaccines has been added to the routine immunization schedule and we seek to encourage vaccination among individuals who are not yet vaccinated,” said Masato Iwasaki, director and senior vice president of the Pharmaceutical Marketing Division at Takeda. “As a manufacturer and distributor of vaccines, Takeda will support the promotion of appropriate vaccination through activities for the widespread adoption of this system, and in doing so, seeks to contribute to the improvement of public health.”
Takeda has taken several initiatives in the development of business models that can provide additional value to patients, as well as healthcare professionals.
Ensuring that a routine immunization schedule is properly conducted has become an issue in the healthcare system. Alfresa supports the management of a routine vaccination schedule for infants and small children, and Takeda is stepping in to join the company.