Read the Conversation
EF: What are your goals for this new position, and what are your priorities for this new region appointed?
JC: Coming from a leading position in Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine in South America, I was appointed as the new managing director for Mexico six months ago.
Since starting in January, my main goal has been accelerating the launch of new transformational medicines in Mexico. My priority is to lead J&J an innovation-focused organization that quickly delivers transformational medicines and ensures equitable access to Mexicans. We face challenges with regulations, access, and adoption, but my objective is to shorten approval timings and establish solid public-private partnerships to ensure our innovations reach those patients in most need. We are confident that we will see more cutting-edge medical innovation in the next 5 to 10 years than in the past century. The company has introduced 23 new drugs in the last decade and plans to launch 20 additional therapies by 2030.
Our innovation aims to intercept and change the trajectory of the diseases we focus on. My goal is to ensure that our transformational medicines truly benefit the lives of Mexicans.
EF: Regarding your access strategy, could you elaborate on the partnerships you intend to build?
JC: The public-private partnership is crucial to ensure a continuous cycle of innovation. Our approach begins with ensuring that all public stakeholders, including government officials, understand the value of innovation. Recognizing the value of pharmaceutical innovation to the country is crucial for patients, healthcare professionals, and primary beneficiaries, as well as attracting the best R&D investments to Mexico which positively impacts the country’s economy and the society as a whole
Pharmaceutical innovation starts long before commercialization. It begins with the R&D phase. We are partnering with private and public stakeholders to bring more clinical trials to Mexico. Currently, we have over 36 clinical trials underway, benefiting more than 2,000 patients with no therapeutic alternatives available in the country. We ensure these patients receive the innovative medicine and follow-up care they need. Our goal is to position Mexico as a hub for clinical trials, allowing us to benefit even more patients early on in the clinical development phase. Opening clinical trials in Mexico also means exporting services and bringing foreign private investment to the country. We aim to reinforce these public-private partnerships, similar to successful examples in Argentina and Spain, where clinical trials became a national priority.
We've had conversations with several high-ranked government officials who understand the importance of Mexico becoming a hub for clinical trials. Johnson & Johnson has a global footprint and an unparalleled experience leading clinical development for innovative medicine, as a company, we aim to accelerate patient recruitment to complete our clinical development as soon as possible to serve patients who are waiting. In Mexico, there’s a great opportunity to accelerate, increase and extend clinical trials both in public and private institutions by establishing clear, transparent and predictable legal and regulatory frameworks that facilitate and expedite the approval of clinical trial protocols, improve hospital infrastructure, but also equally important, elevating the standard of intellectual property rights critical to bring pharmaceutical innovation to the country. Achieving this will position Mexico as a major hub for clinical trials in LATAM and a strategic player worldwide.
Our global presence gives us the experience and expertise to work effectively and partner with the authorities to shorten approval, access and adoption timelines through digitalization, innovative access models and continued medical education to bridge existing medical and scientific gaps.
EF: What is your priority list for your segment in Mexico? What therapeutic areas are in focus, and where are you putting your R&D efforts?
JC: J&J, now a two-sector company, with pharmaceuticals and medical devices segments puts us in a very privileged position to innovate across the entire spectrum of our diseases focus.
We are dedicating our energy and resources to key therapeutic areas where clinical unmet need is largest, and we can make a significant difference. We are facing the toughest challenges in oncology addressing these unmet needs concretely in prostate, lung and bladder cancer in terms of solid tumors but also in blood cancer, like multiple myeloma, lymphoma and leukaemia.
In addition, we are leading the pharmaceutical innovation in immune-mediated diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis. Finally, we have a strong legacy and are continuously innovating in therapeutic areas like pulmonary arterial hypertension, central nervous system disorders, infectious diseases and retina We proudly address these largest unmet medical needs through transformational innovation, including advanced therapies, immunotherapy, precision medicine, gene therapy, bispecific antibodies.
Our clinical trials target these areas with cutting-edge technology. For instance, around 70% of our public pipeline consists of precision medicine, focusing on personalized therapeutics. We are not treating lung disease as a single disease but targeting specific lung diseases that express particular biomarkers. This approach allows us to provide treatments that make a significant difference, leading to longer and happier lives for patients.
Our innovations include various modes of action, such as immunotherapy and gene therapy, which target anomalies in the patient's DNA. All this technology, when incorporated into clinical trials, highlights the value of innovation to governments and officials. Bringing cutting-edge technology to patients sustainably through clinical trials benefits patients and healthcare professionals and demonstrates to governments its positive impact on their healthcare systems. This approach addresses budgetary restrictions, making the entire ecosystem more sustainable.
EF: How is J&J adapting digitalization in healthcare?
JC: We're working hard, especially within AMIIF, to emphasize the importance of open collaboration and public-private partnerships. We can only advance clinical trials, innovation, and partnerships if our regulatory agency takes less time to approve protocols and has more transparency. Digitalization is very important in impacting Mexico's healthcare system, especially from a regulatory standpoint.
Digitalization would make a significant difference, ensuring shorter approval times and enhanced transparency across the healthcare system. We must aim to approve protocols and clinical trials in less than 60 days, and after witnessing countries in our LATAM region such as Argentina and Brazil doing so significantly, I see opportunities for Mexico to join this special club. Moreover, there are great opportunities for digitalization in other parts of the health system, such as medical records, electronic prescriptions, and drug distribution across the country which will definitively lead to better decision-making at optimizing health resources.
Internally, digitalization is deeply embedded in our clinical trials, where we use AI to accelerate the discovery processes of new molecular entities. AI is revolutionizing our approach, shortening the time between clinical development, regulatory milestones and patient impact. It also enhances our interactions with healthcare professionals by answering their medical questions or covering scientific gaps in real-time. AI is truly changing the game, and J&J is at the forefront of this innovation.
EF: What is J&J’s social commitment beyond the product? How are you generating a positive impact beyond health for the general well-being of the nation?
JC: We have been around for 135 years, thanks to our strong focus on our priorities reflected in Our Credo. As the world's largest healthcare company, J&J assumes a significant corporate and social responsibility, serving and working with communities to ensure they are healthier and more productive. One of our global initiatives, “Health for Humanity”, provides equitable access to our medications and strives to improve community environmental safety, productivity, inclusiveness, and diversity. In Mexico, where we have had an uninterrupted presence for over 80 years, 2023 was a remarkable year for community engagement. We implemented 46 different community programs, serving 25 NGOs nationwide, directly benefiting over 95,000 people and indirectly benefiting over 3 million, through J&J Foundation, and most importantly, we involved 2,500 employees enrolled as volunteers dedicating more than 6,600 hours of community service.
We have a strong tradition of impacting communities through corporate initiatives like the already mentioned J&J Foundation and fostering diversity and inclusion through Enterprise Resource Groups led by employees. For instance, our Women Leadership Initiative ensures a strong representation of female professionals across all levels, especially in leadership positions. Similarly, our Open & Out group promotes a welcoming environment and aims to make J&J the employer of choice for the LGBTQ+ group. We also support ADA, our alliance for diverse abilities, addressing mental health challenges and ensuring inclusivity for individuals with Down syndrome. Additionally, GENNow directs our efforts on fostering collaboration among the four generations currently working at J&J, promoting understanding, and leveraging diverse experiences daily.
EF: After 18 years in the company, what makes J&J a place to stay, and what is your proudest achievement so far?
JC: I've been with J&J for 18 years, starting my career in Spain, where I spent a decade before moving to various countries like Colombia, Ecuador, Perú, Central America, the Caribbean, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia, and now Mexico. It's been quite a journey, and if I were to explain what keeps me here, I'd say three things stand out. Firstly, J&J is a company where I can truly be myself. My diversity and uniqueness are not just accepted but celebrated.
Secondly, J&J is intensely focused on innovation. The commitment to lead where medicine is going making diseases a thing of the past isn't just rhetoric; it's a bold mission that inspires me. Knowing that our work is dedicated to solving some of the world's most challenging health problems, from life-threatening diseases to global health crises, gives my role a deeper purpose beyond just a job. It connects me to a mission-driven organization where making a real impact on patients' lives is our driving force.
Last but not least, what truly keeps me here is how J&J nurtures and develops talent and how deeply the company cares for each employee individually. It's a humbling responsibility, especially in my role, to ensure that every employee feels valued, connected to their purpose, and empowered to fulfil their mission. We invest continuously in their growth, pushing them beyond what they thought were their limits and shaping them into future leaders within our organization every day.
I'm there whenever there's an unmet need and an opportunity to make a difference. Mexico is no exception. Significant opportunities exist to elevate Mexico's healthcare outcomes, increase the healthcare GDP contribution, and align standards with the rest of LATAM. It's about bringing innovation swiftly and ensuring universal, equitable access that truly impacts Mexican patients today and, in the future, sustainably. I'm excited to contribute to Mexico catching up with global standards in quality, processes, digitalization, and innovation in a way that makes a real difference.
