The board of directors of GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Nigeria Plc has disclosed the resignation of Bhushan Akshikar, the Managing Director of the Company and Kareem Hamdy, the Finance Director.
Akshikar’s resignation was as a result of his reassignment to a new leadership role within the GSK Regional Vaccines organisation and completion of his assignment in Nigeria.
Following the resignations, the company appointed Kunle Oyelana as Managing Director, Mark Pfister as Executive Director of Consumer Healthcare, and Bosco Kirugi as Finance Director. The new appointments will become effective come Saturday, June 1st, 2019.
Below are the brief profiles of the newly appointed directors.
Kunle Oyelana: He s currently the Marketing & Commercial Excellence Director at
GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical Nigeria Plc. Come barely two months time, he will resume as the company’s Managing Director.
Oyelana brings over twenty years’ experience in the Pharmaceutical industry, particularly in GSK where he has held roles of increasing responsibilities in the company’s areas of operation cutting across Africa and Asia. He has a track record of success in the development and effective implementation of robust strategies, with a keen focus on delivering sustainable growth in diverse markets.
As Commercial Director for the Classic Established Products (CEP) Portfolio for GSK in DC Africa Region, he ensured prioritisation and provided a stimulus for the over 40 markets
in the region to surpass 20% growth of key assets, despite challenging environment.
As Marketing & Commercial Excellence Director for Nigeria and earlier for Kenya, Oyelana led the rapid deployment of Commercial Trade Channel initiatives, effective utilisation of multiple channels and cross-functional collaboration to deliver exceptional customer engagement and sustained business growth.
Oyelana holds a Bachelor of Pharmacy and an MBA from Obafemi Awolowo University in Nigeria. He is also an alumnus of Strathmore Business School in Kenya and IMD in Switzerland.
Mark Pfister: He is currently the General Manager, GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Business, Nigeria & West Africa. On the date stated above, he will resume his new position as the Executive Director in charge of Consumer Healthcare at GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Nigeria Plc.
Pfister has over 21 years of extensive experience across FMCG, Consumer Healthcare and
Pharmaceutical industries in Africa with the last seven years being spent in West Africa with GSK.
He has served as Enterprise General Manager for GSK Pharma and Consumer in Ghana & Other West Africa (OWA) between 2015 – 2018, as well as Commercial Director for Ghana & OWA in 2015 and as Marketing Director for Consumer Healthcare in Nigeria from 2011 to 2014.
Pfister who holds a first degree in Physical Science and MBA post-graduate degree from universities in South Africa started his career in South Africa as a medical representative for Novartis in 1996.
His core experience is in marketing, beginning his marketing career at Cadbury South Africa before joining GSK Consumer Healthcare South Africa 2008 as Product Manager on the OTC portfolio.
Over the following years, he has developed extensive experience in both marketing and commercial excellence roles until his appointment in 2018 as the General Manager, GSK Consumer Healthcare for Nigeria and West Africa.
Bosco Kirugi: He is currently the Head, In-Country Shared Service, Finance, at GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical Nigeria Plc. Kirugi joined GSK in 2009 as a Senior Accountant – Receivables in Finance.
Over the past ten years, he has held positions of increasing responsibilities in the Company including Finance Planning and Reporting Manager for GSK Southern Africa, Commercial Analytics and Insights Manager, and Commercial Finance Manager for GSK Kenya and Planning Manager for Africa and Developing Countries of Asia region.
In 2018, he was the acting Head of Commercial and Finance for Myanmar. Prior to joining GSK, he worked for Maersk Kenya Ltd. for four years.
Kirugi is a holder of Bachelor of Commerce – Finance from Kenyatta University and Certificate in Business Accounting from the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.
He has received several awards at GSK including a Certificate of Recognition for leadership excellence in driving performance in 2017, General Manager’s Award (Kenya) in 2015 and the Sales Excellence Award (Southern Africa) in 2013.
