Jazz Pharmaceuticals on Monday said it will begin searching for a successor to CEO Bruce Cozadd, who plans to retire from the company he helped start more than two decades ago.
Cozadd will stay on as CEO until Jazz finds his replacement, after which he plans to continue serving as chair of the Dublin-based drugmaker’s board of directors. The company expects the search process to be completed within one year.
Cozadd co-founded Jazz in 2003 and was appointed CEO in April 2009. Since then, he has led the company through the approval of several medicines and the $7 billion acquisition of GW Pharmaceuticals in 2021. He also presided over a 2011 merger with Azur Pharma that moved its corporate headquarters to Ireland — a notable example of a business practice known as a “tax inversion.”
The company share price has risen from about $1 apiece in April 2009 to $125.20 at Monday’s close.
“It has been the honor of my career to co-found and lead Jazz alongside such a talented team of researchers, scientists and business professionals,” Cozadd said in a statement Monday.
“With great momentum and the business in a strong position entering 2025, I feel confident that Jazz’s next leader will be well-positioned to build on our legacy of growth and success, and continue delivering for our patients, employees, partners and shareholders for years to come,” he added.
Jazz said that it remains on track to meet its guidance of between $4 billion and $4.1 billion in revenue for the year. The company, which employs some 2,800 people, earns the bulk of its revenue from Xywav, a treatment for cataplexy or excessive daytime sleepiness, and Epidiolex, a cannibidiol-based drug for epilepsy that Jazz acquired via its GW deal.
Rick Winningham, Jazz’s lead independent director, said the company has been readying for this transition through “rigorous succession planning,” including by developing internal leaders.
The search for Cozadd’s replacement will be led by a special committee of the board made up of independent directors. External, as well as internal, candidates will be considered.
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- Source: https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/jazz-ceo-retire-bruce-cozadd-successor-search/735712/