Read the Conversation
Meeting highlights:
- The growth Lundbeck is experiencing locally and globally and how the company had the best semester ever.
- Reshaping the strategy of the company: How the company is aiming for innovative products for CNS and applying a different way of working.
- Priority in the company's agenda in Brazil: Developing and commercializing products to treat depression.
- The importance of talent for Josiel: Giving value to the employees.
- Taking care of people as a pharmaceutical company: Applying a home office policy as a part of a more flexible and better work-balance policy.
- How Lundbeck works with local government and other entities such as the Danish embassy and the Brazilian Psychiatrics Association to set mental health as a top priority in the healthcare agenda.
- The strategic importance of Lundbeck Brazil in the restructuring of the company.
EF: What is at the top of your agenda for 2024-2025?
JF: Aside from the business side, our main priority is delivering the numbers to stakeholders. That's a given and doesn't need much discussion. Globally, we raised our targets for the second semester because we had one of the best first semesters ever. Our CEO is happy, especially since this is his first full year in the company, so he raised the targets, which is a good sign. We're doing the same in my area because we also had our best semester ever, and I was strongly encouraged to increase my targets. To give some context, the company underwent an important restructuring last week. We reshaped the Latin American market, and now my colleague Sara, based in Mexico, is responsible for Chile and Argentina, overseeing all of Latin America except Brazil. Last July was my last business trip to Argentina, and now I'm transitioning and assisting with everything we've been doing here in Brazil to Mexico. Given the market size, I'm fully focused on Brazil, which, in some companies, represents around half of the Latin American market.
Beyond business, my focus today is understanding how best to manage people in this post-pandemic environment. Many things have changed, especially with the rise of home offices versus traditional office work. Being a mental health company, we need to pay closer attention to how we treat employees who may be struggling and how we can balance their quality of life with their workload to prevent stress and burnout. We want to avoid situations where employees become patients themselves. We are investing much time in training our team to manage people effectively. After 30 years in leadership roles, I see more than ever how important it is to value people truly. Many companies say people are our greatest asset, but few act on it. That's a focus for my management team now: understanding how to get the best from our people without harming them. As competition increases, we work harder and strive to find a better balance between our professional and personal lives. One initiative we've launched is the Well-being Project, which aims to help employees find that balance. However, our biggest challenge as managers is understanding the limits and finding the right path forward. We're preparing a new generation of managers and executives to face a new reality. It's not the corporate world we used to know; it's now a blend of entrepreneurship and remote work where motivations change.
EF: If you had to identify two or three qualities you are trying to instil in this new generation of managers in Brazil, what would they be?
JF: The first quality a manager must have is liking people more than the process. Take finance, for example. Finance professionals are often focused on numbers and work inside the box. Sometimes, they forget that it's people who carry out the processes. If you genuinely care about people, you’ll understand them better. I’ve noticed that people appreciate small, personal gestures more than big managerial actions. For instance, I call every one of my employees on their birthday. With around 150 employees, making one call a day is not difficult. Each call only takes about five minutes, but it makes a huge difference. It's a simple, cost-free way to show that you care. This is just one example of how people value these small gestures, and it's something I'm trying to teach my management team.
In the past, we were trained to separate personal and professional life. You'd leave home at home and work at work. That's no longer realistic. If someone has a sick child, they can't be as productive, and it's important to acknowledge that. Of course, we're not trying to invade personal lives, but as managers, we must understand the person as a human being. This became even more crucial after the pandemic, with many working from home. However, having a home office policy isn't enough if managers keep pushing employees without understanding their limits. It's about how we manage deliverables, not just where we work. This week, I posted a video for Yellow September, raising awareness about suicide prevention. I spoke about how we sometimes add unnecessary pressure for minor things. It's a challenge for us as a pharma company focusing on mental health. In summary, you have to genuinely like people to manage well. It's people over process.
EF: What is your home-office policy currently, and are there fixed days?
JF: Employees can work two days from home and three days in the office. One day is fixed, and one is flexible. We chose Friday as the fixed home office day because traffic in Rio is terrible, making commuting less productive. Once employees pick their second work-from-home day, that day also becomes fixed. The choice is up to them.
EF How does this impact productivity generally?
JF: We haven't noticed any drop in productivity with our home office setup. Of course, we had to create ways to measure productivity. Some tasks are easier because they have clear deliverables, while others are more complicated. We developed some metrics, and managers must be more systematic in setting goals to ensure work gets done, even when employees aren't in the office. Before the pandemic, I was completely against the home office model. However, the pandemic changed my mindset, and now I fully support it. One key lesson I've learned is that if employees are committed in the office, they'll be just as committed when working remotely. It comes down to the person's character and dedication, whether in the office or at home.
As a 63-year-old manager, one of my challenges is learning how to work with employees in the 25-30 age range (Gen Z). Sometimes, I mistakenly expect them to act as I did at their age, which is wrong. They approach work differently, have a different level of resilience and psychological maturity, and are much more technically skilled than I was back then. This generational shift is something managers my age are struggling with. Younger employees often want quick promotions—they're not as patient as we were. I see this with my son, who also works in pharma. He tells me it's been almost two years, and they haven’t promoted him yet. When I was his age, I waited five to seven years for a promotion. This is a major challenge for older, more traditional managers as we navigate this generational transition. It's crucial for the future of pharma and healthcare as companies reshape themselves and sustainable healthcare systems are being defined.
EF: What is the mission you were given in this transformation? What are you looking forward to working on besides the management team?
JF: We are currently reshaping our company strategy. This shift is partly driven by changes at the top level, bringing in fresh ideas. Our new approach focuses on more innovative and future-oriented products, targeting niche markets that require specialized skills, both in terms of products and professionals. We are also evolving our beliefs into actionable behaviours, which incorporate our previous values but with a modern approach. We are training and preparing our team for this new way of working and adjusting the organization for a future-oriented model. This is a move some big companies have made recently, and Lundbeck plans to follow in the next few years. Developing new products in the CNS field is more complex and time-consuming, but our new CEO is guiding us to be more focused, so we've grouped several markets in one region. Larger markets like Brazil, China, Japan, Australia, Canada, and major European countries will operate more independently. Reports from top-level management are gaining more importance and investment as we prepare for the future.
In Brazil, access to innovative and rare disease treatments has opened up over the last ten years, making it a promising market for such projects. My future goal is to reshape our approach gradually. While we still have profitable major projects, especially in the strong generic market here, it's different from places like Europe or North America, where generic competition causes a sharp sales decline. In Brazil, even with generics, we can maintain solid sales. We plan to continue working with mature products while preparing the company to focus on innovative CNS and mental health solutions for the future. Alongside our global agenda, we are also working to bring mental health into the spotlight with the Brazilian government. Despite the large population affected by mental illness, it's not a top priority for the health sector. We are pushing for change with the support of the Danish embassy in Brazil, especially since mental health is a top priority in Denmark under the new Queen. The Queen, a global ambassador for mental health, is helping us connect with the Brazilian government to prioritize mental health, which will also help us expand the market.
EF: What are the opportunities in the market, and what does Brazil need to develop further from a physician's or infrastructural perspective to be at the forefront of dealing with mental health? What are two areas of improvement required when dealing with issues of mental health?
JF: We need to engage more politicians and bring this issue to the Congress agenda. When I say government, I don’t just mean the president; I’m also referring to Congress. We need more representatives who can politically influence and prioritize these discussions. Certain diseases, like those affecting children, tend to get more attention from the government because they evoke sensitivity. However, mental illness, especially among the elderly, is less attractive to them. Mental health conditions have more complex and subjective diagnoses, and the government often doesn’t see them as important as diseases like cancer or heart disease. Yet, many people are dying from mental illness. Suicide rates in Brazil and developed countries are high, and the real numbers are often hidden because they don't want to reveal the full scale of the problem. Pushing this issue with politicians and finding representatives who can advocate for us is crucial. I believe pharma companies can also help raise awareness of mental illness in Brazil. Unfortunately, while we are leaders in this area, we are small and lack the resources to do it alone. We're working with the Danish embassy and certain politicians to bring this issue to Congress.
EF: With the portfolio you have in Brazil, what is the biggest prevalence? Where do you see most of the portfolio's needs in Brazil?
JF: Our main portfolio here focuses on depression. We know that migraine products are available in Spain, but we haven't gotten their approval due to pricing issues. Depression remains our primary focus, especially since the market for depression has been growing by double digits each year after the pandemic.
EF: What do you attribute this increase to? Is it a matter of more diagnostics? What is driving this growth?
JF: There have been more diagnoses recently as people gain better access to doctors, and the prevalence of depression itself has increased. Many people faced job losses, lost loved ones, or dealt with the stress of staying home for extended periods during the pandemic. Additionally, some who had COVID-19 developed depression as a side effect. In Brazil, unlike other countries, you can see a psychiatrist directly without needing a referral from a general practitioner, which is also the case in Argentina. In Europe and the US, you typically must see a GP first and be referred to a specialist after multiple visits. Here, it's common to go straight to a specialist, but you may still wait two to three months for an appointment with a good psychiatrist due to high demand. This has caused a patient rise and boosted our business, with sales growing almost 20% annually since the pandemic.
Telehealth has made remote consultations easier since no physical exams are needed, just a conversation. Some psychiatrists are now seeing patients exclusively through virtual channels, which has also contributed to increased access. As part of this shift, we are enhancing our omnichannel approach to better engage with our clients. We're developing multiple ways to complement in-person visits with virtual ones. Some doctors only receive virtual calls from our sales reps, while others prefer a hybrid approach. Omni-channel communication is now one of our top priorities as we work to make visits more personalized for each physician. The omnichannel approach is a key focus on our agenda.
EF: How would you like the end of this year to look, and is there any final message you would like to share?
JF: My personal goal is for our company to be recognized by employees for practising what we promote. This is one of the biggest challenges. Recently, we had an employee whose son, a young adult, was hospitalized with a mental illness. We gave her a month off to be with him, and the rest of the team received this gesture very well. While offering such flexibility isn't easy, it positively impacts morale. We want to support patients outside with the best treatments and ensure our employees feel fully supported and engaged. I would love for our employees to see that we truly live the values we promote.
