The boss’s plan to divide the pharma giant has support – but her own position may hinge on a crucial presentation this week
Dame Emma Walmsley faces the toughest day of her career as chief executive of GlaxoSmithKline on Wednesday. The head of Britain’s second-biggest drugmaker will present a 10-year outlook to shareholders and analysts, under pressure from an aggressive US hedge fund to demonstrate that she is the right person to lead the company beyond its breakup next summer.
Since New York-based Elliott Management took a multibillion-pound stake in GSK in April to push for change, Walmsley – one of only seven female FTSE 100 chief executives – has been under mounting pressure to improve the drugmaker’s performance. She inherited a threadbare pipeline of new medicines when she took over from Sir Andrew Witty in April 2017, but after four years, some say it is time for her to be delivering. GSK’s share price has fallen 14% during that time to £14.23– below the £18 level at which it stood when Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham merged in 2000.
