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In September, the Generic Pharmaceutical Association announced the appointment of Ralph Neas — former president and CEO of the National Coalition on Health Care — as its new president and CEO, replacing Kathleen Jaeger, who stepped down as president and CEO of the organization in May 2010. Drug Store News recently spoke with Neas about his plans and vision for the organization and the industry as a whole.


SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Pharmaceutical wholesaler H. D. Smith announced on Thursday that Dave Watkins, CFO, will leave the company to join Chicago Public Schools as its new CFO, effective Nov. 7.

H. D. Smith stated that it will soon name an executive to serve as interim CFO while a search for a replacement is conducted.

In his new role, Watkins will be taking a leadership position in addressing the financial challenges of the third-largest school district in the United States, serving more than 400,000 students.

PITTSBURGH — Generic drug maker Mylan's board of directors has approved a new management structure for the company, effective Jan. 1, 2012.

Mylan's board approved the transition of current chairman and CEO Robert Coury to the new role of executive board chairman. With this, Mylan president Heather Bresch will become CEO and directly report to the company's board.

NEW YORK — Bristol-Myers Squibb announced changes to its senior management team, including the appointment of its U.S. pharmaceuticals president.

CHICAGO — Sue Klug, president of the Southern California division of Supervalu, was awarded the Bobbie O'Hare Award for outstanding service to the Network of Executive Women on Friday.

OAKLAND, Calif. — Clorox announced that EVP and CFO Dan Heinrich, who has served as financial chief of the company since 2003, will retire Nov. 16.

In addition to his current role leading all aspects of the finance, business development and investor relations functions and corporate administrative services, during his career with Clorox, Heinrich also oversaw the corporate communications, risk management and IT functions. Heinrich, who joined the company in 2001 and controller, also is a member of the company's executive committee.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT’S IMPORTANT — Family Dollar is on a mission to increase traffic to its stores — of which it intends to build twice as many in fiscal 2012 as it did in fiscal 2011 — and grow its market basket. That has meant a growing emphasis on what it considers its consumables business, a substantial portion of which is constituted by health and beauty aids. As part of a long-term strategy to create an improved shopping experience and enhance customer loyalty, it expanded consumables into 5,800 stores over the past year.

NEW YORK — Longtime CVS/pharmacy executive Mike Bloom has resigned from the company and will serve as president and COO of Family Dollar Stores.

“Mike Bloom, EVP of merchandising and supply chain, has resigned from the company. We thank him for his many contributions to the success of our retail business over the past 19 years and wish him luck in his future endeavors,” stated Carolyn Castel, VP of corporate communications at CVS Caremark, in a statement sent to Drug Store News.

AMSTERDAM — Ahold has announced the appointment of Jeff Carr as EVP and CFO, starting Nov. 12.

Carr will be a member of Ahold’s corporate executive board, pending shareholder approval. He will succeed Kimberly Ross, who is leaving Ahold in November to become CFO of Avon.

Carr will be responsible for Ahold’s finance, real estate and IT functions. He will also manage the company’s existing €350 million cost reduction program and explore further ways to reduce costs and simplify the business.

PURCHASE, N.Y. — PepsiCo on Wednesday announced several executive changes at its company, including a new CEO of PepsiCo Beverages Americas.

Frito-Lay North America president and CEO Al Carey was named CEO of the PepsiCo Beverages Americas unit, effective immediately. In his new role, Carey, a 30-year PepsiCo veteran, will be responsible for all aspects of the beverage businesses in the Americas. He will report to PepsiCo chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi.

PITTSBURGH — GlaxoSmithKline's Consumer Healthcare division has appointed a former Kraft Foods executive as its new chief customer officer.

In his new role, Keith Loranger will be responsible for leading the GSK Consumer Healthcare’s sales function to increase sales and profit for the company’s oral health and wellness categories, including such brands as Aquafresh, NicoDerm CQ and Tums, among others. Prior to joining the company, Loranger served as Kraft Foods' customer VP international strategy after joining the company in 1985.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Sears Holdings announced that former UPS executive Raj Penkar is joining the company as SVP and president of the company's supply chain.

In his new role, Penkar will be accountable for all aspects of the company's supply chain, including logistics, warehousing, inventory management and distribution. Prior to joining Sears, Penkar worked at UPS for 24 years and most recently served as president of UPS' customer solutions division.