Elanco Expands Executive Team to Lead Company Post Bayer Animal Health Acquisition

Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE: ELAN) announced today it will expand its existing leadership team, adding a Chief Marketing Officer and three commercial leaders to its current Executive Committee. The expanded team adds depth and experience to position Elanco for continued growth.

“With our anticipated addition of Bayer Animal Health, we’re looking to ensure we have the right structure and right leadership in place to support the combined organization and accelerate the benefits we’ve already experienced in being singularly focused on animal health,” said Jeff Simmons, president and CEO of Elanco. “Our people have always been Elanco’s differentiator. So, in our executive selection process we focused on identifying people-focused leaders with a proven ability to build, lead and grow an integrated, global business.”

The existing Elanco Executive Committee has led the company through significant transformation while delivering growth and repositioning the business for the next era. Current team members will remain and will be complemented with key leaders from Bayer Animal Health post-closing, as well as outside expertise that will help propel the combined company to new levels of leadership. The new leadership structure is designed to speed quality decision making, draw senior leadership even closer to the customer and accelerate the transformation toward more consumer and brand-centricity.

The new Elanco Executive Committee members include:

Dirk Ehle, current global head of Bayer Animal Health, will join Elanco as executive vice president and president Elanco Europe at the closing of the Bayer Animal Health acquisition. Ehle has spent 18 years with Bayer AG in a variety of leadership roles, and the past eight as the leader of Bayer Animal Health. Under his leadership, Bayer Animal Health focused on driving growth and profitability, strengthening core brands, expanding sales channel presence while strengthening organization-wide customer focus, increasing R&D productivity and pipeline value.

Joyce Lee, currently president of North America for Bayer Animal Health, will join Elanco as executive vice president and president US Pet Health and Commercial Operations at acquisition closing. Since taking her current role in 2016, Lee has accelerated the growth and profitability of the business and increased North America market share through new market entries, strategic organic growth initiatives and highly successful ecommerce strategies. Prior to her role at Bayer, Lee held commercial leadership positions at Pfizer, Zoetis and Pharmacia Human Health.