Daniel O’Day has been appointed chairman and chief executive officer, Gilead Sciences, effective March 1, 2019. Mr. O’Day is currently chief executive officer of Roche Pharmaceuticals. He has held the position since 2012, and prior to that led Roche Diagnostics. He succeeds John F. Milligan, PhD, who will step down from his role as president and chief executive officer at the end of 2018.

Also, Gregg Alton has been named interim chief executive officer from January 1, 2019 until March 1, 2019. Mr. Alton has held a number of executive positions at Gilead over the past 20 years, with experience in legal, medical affairs, policy and commercial. He previously served as general counsel and in August of this year, was appointed chief patient officer.

“Following a comprehensive search, the Board became convinced that Dan is the right leader to bring Gilead into the future,” said John C. Martin, PhD, Chairman, Gilead Sciences Board of Directors. “He is uniquely qualified to take on this role given his track record of success in highly scientific and competitive therapeutic areas, deep understanding of the evolving healthcare environment around the world, and unwavering commitment to driving innovation across all aspects of a business, which will serve Gilead and our stakeholders well. Additionally, Dan brings expertise and values that are aligned with our organization, and I, along with Gilead’s entire Board, am confident in his ability to work alongside our talented leadership team and deliver on our ambitious goals.”

Mr. O’Day joined Roche Pharmaceuticals in 1987 and held various positions in the U.S. before moving to Roche headquarters in Switzerland in 1998, where he held leadership roles in Global Marketing and Lifecycle Management. In 2001, he moved to Tokyo to become head of Corporate Planning for Roche Pharmaceuticals in Japan and later moved to Denmark to serve as general manager. He became president of Roche Molecular Diagnostics in California in 2006 and subsequently returned to Roche headquarters to lead the Diagnostics Division before assuming his current position.  

“I have long admired Gilead for its work to develop medicines that have fundamentally changed the way HIV and viral hepatitis are treated. The company has successfully grown into a global organization, providing access to people around the world, while maintaining its focus on innovative science,” said Mr. O’Day. “Together with the Board, leadership team and Gilead’s 11,000 employees, I look forward to building on this in ways that I believe will – in keeping with Gilead’s mission – transform the lives of millions of individuals.”

As previously announced, Dr. Martin will step down from the company’s board, effective March 1, 2019.