Sanofi Investors Question Choice of CEO With ‘Huge Task’ Ahead

For Belen Garijo, returning to her former employer Sanofi might seem like something of a homecoming, but there’s little to suggest it will be easy.

The 65-year-old, who will take the helm at the French drugmaker end-April, is coming from the German science group Merck KGaA,where she spent 15 years — about five of them as its chief executive officer.

Unlike her reign at Merck, where she took over as CEO in 2021, ahead of the pandemic-era earnings peak, she will be arriving at Sanofi at a difficult time — her predecessor Paul Hudson struggled to revive research ...