Mene Pangalos

Mene was appointed EVP, R&D BioPharmaceuticals, AstraZeneca in January 2019 and is responsible for discovery through to late-stage development for Cardiovascular, Renal & Metabolism (CVRM) and Respiratory diseases. Prior to this, he served as EVP of AstraZeneca’s Innovative Medicines and Early Development Biotech Unit and Global Business Development, where he had overall responsibility for research and early development activities spanning three continents.

Since joining AstraZeneca in 2010, Mene has been instrumental in transforming the company’s commitment to science. He has led the transformation of R&D productivity through the development and implementation of the “5R” framework resulting in a greater than four-fold increase in success rates compared to industry averages. In parallel, he has championed an open approach to working with academic and other external partners, changing the nature of academic-industry collaboration.

One of AstraZeneca’s leading scientists, Mene has published over 150 peer-reviewed articles in scientific journals and has served as editor of various books and journals. He is the holder of an Honorary degree of Doctor of Science from Glasgow University and Imperial College, London, and most recently awarded the Galien Scientific Research Award by Prix Galien Greece.

He is a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences, the Royal Society of Biology and Clare Hall, University of Cambridge. He serves on the Medical Research Council (MRC) Council, co-chairs the Life Sciences Council Expert Group on Innovation, Clinical Research and Data and is a member of the Life Sciences Industrial Strategy Implementation Board and the Royal Society’s Science, Industry and Translation Committee. He is also a Board member of the British Pharmaceutical Group, The Francis Crick Institute, Dizal Pharma, Cambridge University’s Judge Business School, the University of Cambridge Advisory Board GapSummit 2020, and is a Member of the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre Scientific Advisory Board.

Mene also oversees the creation of AstraZeneca’s new research centre and Global Headquarters in Cambridge - a state of the art facility designed to stimulate collaborative scientific innovation and which will play an important role in the future success of the UK life science industry.