Paul Hudson

People I work with often hear me saying “work in progress”. Yes, I am a work in progress as a leader. And so is the organization I have the privilege to lead. We have a lot to do for example to build the future of our workplace, a place where our people can bring their best selves.

We will never get everything perfect, but we can take action and raise our game. That is why today we announce the implementation of a global standard for inclusive and equal parental leave. Starting in 2022, 14 weeks paid leave will be granted to any Sanofi employee welcoming a new child, due to childbirth, adoption or surrogacy, no matter the country they are working in and irrespective of gender or sexual orientation.

There is still work to be done but this is a concrete step forward for driving equality in the workplace, for giving all of our employees the freedom to determine the childcare arrangements that work best for them and providing quality time to better bond together as a family.

I am pleased to announce today that Sanofi will become a partner of Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Games are a once-in-a-lifetime moment that brings people together from all around the world. As a French-based company with a truly global footprint, it’s important for us to play our part in the success of the Paris Games and unite all of our teams behind shared values of diversity, inclusion, sustainability and openness to the world. It will also be a unique opportunity to highlight the benefits of physical activity on health. I look forward to this journey with all of our colleagues and Tony Estanguet’s team. #Paris2024 Read more: https://lnkd.in/dNTdirQ

Since the onset of the pandemic, we have been striving to do the right thing and to do things right. We announced yesterday evening that we will provide BioNTech access to our established infrastructure and expertise to produce over 125 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine in Europe in 2021.

By putting forward some of our manufacturing capacity to help protect lives, we remain true to our commitment to public health and the collective goal of defeating the virus.

Thank you to all the Sanofi teams who work very hard to make possible a one-of-a-kind effort and find solutions to adapt, in record time, complex manufacturing processes whilst still advancing the research and development of our two vaccine candidates. #vaccines #covid19 https://lnkd.in/dsZsDR6

Today we announced our plans to acquire Translate Bio, a clinical stage mRNA therapeutics company with which we started to collaborate in 2018. Once completed, this acquisition will allow us to accelerate our efforts to develop the next generation of mRNA vaccines against infectious diseases and further explore the potential of mRNA technology in other areas such as immunology, oncology and rare diseases. This new platform will become an important new component of our large research toolbox, built with the objective of giving our world-class Sanofi R&D teams the best tools for discovering breakthroughs that will change the practice of medicine and positively impact people’s lives. #science #innovation #mRNA

Congratulations to all the Sanofi teams who have been engaged in getting FDA approval for a medicine that delivers on our ongoing efforts to help address the needs of patients living with multiple myeloma. It takes a lot of people working relentlessly for weeks to pass through a regulatory dossier! Our work will continue with clinical programs for this medicine, and several others in early development. Special kudos to the R&D and Industrial Affairs teams from our biotech site in Vitry, France where this homegrown asset was developed.

Challenges and difficulties of life do not stop at the door of the office.

Today we are taking another step in our journey to create an inclusive workplace environment through the launch of the ‘Cancer & Work: Acting Together’ program. This program takes a 360° approach to provide social, emotional and financial support to all Sanofi employees whose lives are impacted by cancer and other critical illnesses; from initial diagnosis, through the treatment journey, to return to work.

‘Cancer & Work: Acting Together’ is scaling internationally an inspiring initiative created in France in 2017 by Sanofi employee Helene Bonnet with the support of many other colleagues who had experienced cancer.
 
Overall, it’s about playing our part at Sanofi in helping erase the stigma of cancer in the workplace. And for me personally, it’s also about treading in the footsteps of leaders like Arthur Sadoun from Publicis and his ‘Working with Cancer’ pledge.

Read more: https://lnkd.in/eXXtkw_F

Photo: Members of ‘Cancer & Work: Acting Together’ French Network

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought into sharp focus how incredibly important medical research is to society. I am inspired by all the scientists, at Sanofi and beyond, who are working round the clock to find a treatment or vaccine against the virus.

As we consider what comes next, we can look to those who are working every day to push the boundaries of science for patients to help us navigate through the unknown: trying, failing, learning, and ultimately making progress. Step by step, without giving up.

Hear some Voices from the Lab, a video series featuring some of our top scientists on: https://bit.ly/2X7fDLb

#science Annemarie Van Nieuwenhuijze Marie-Priscille Brun Nadine Biesemann

My final engagement of 2023 was delivering a commencement speech to more than 1200 future leaders from the CEMS - The Global Alliance in Management Education graduating class. Finishing the year surrounded by the energy of the next generation from around the world, gave me renewed hope for a positive outlook on the future.

The world today looks much different compared to when I started out 30 years ago. The geopolitical, environmental and social changes we face now are having a significant impact on our society, including the way we work and do business. Even more so with the recent and rapid evolution of new tech and artificial intelligence.

Something I once heard Maria Shriver say that has stayed with me - those joining the workforce today have different expectations. Many are not interested in linear progression. Instead, they are looking for more diverse experiences that broaden them professionally and personally, and prepare them for an increasingly complex and turbulent world. Many in this new generation enter the workforce already knowing more about new technology and data than those before them. They do things differently.

Needless to say, the original “playbook” for navigating one’s career has been shredded.

In many ways, so has the original playbook of Sanofi. It also looks much different today than 30, 20, even 10 years ago.

At my first engagement of 2024, the JPM Annual Healthcare Conference, I spoke about our new playbook and how its transforming Sanofi into a modern healthcare company: science-led, tech-powered and delivering breakthrough medicines and vaccines to people around the world.

But transformation at this scale doesn’t happen without a willingness to adapt to the fast-moving, ever-changing world around us.

So, looking ahead to 2024, I’ll do my best to follow the advice that, as a leader of today, I gave to the future leaders of tomorrow. First, stay curious and grounded. Second, be open to change. And third, keep a “work in progress” mindset. That’s what we are doing at Sanofi as we set out to transform the practice of medicine.

#innovation #science

As Sanofi announced today its Q3 2019 financial results, my first results as CEO, I have taken time to pause, reflect and share three personal highlights, drawing on what I have learned in my first two months on the job.

Last Friday, I had a one-hour interview with three students from HEC Paris, a French business school, for their HEC Alumni magazine. Planned for several weeks, the interview came at the end of a particularly dramatic week. Sanofi found itself pulled into a global controversy on COVID-19 vaccines, with the article stating that we intended to prioritize one country over others in the development of a vaccine–a suggestion that is simply incorrect. My conversation with Maria, Alexander and Benjamin allowed me to reflect on the controversy created by the interview and untangle the complexity of the issues at stake. #COVID19 #vaccines

Today, on World Health Day, I am delighted to share how we will further embed our new social impact strategy into our mission to transform lives, including through the creation of a nonprofit unit to increase access to essential medicines for patients in 40 lower income countries. There is so much still to do for our patients, our people, our communities, and the planet. At Sanofi, we know we can do more. #purpose #wecandomore

I often say that digital technology has the potential to unlock “magic” in the biopharma industry, to the direct benefit of patients. Sometimes, the magic is not where you would first expect it to be.

Take for example the use of cloud-based data systems in drug regulation. The future use of such systems will obviously require new technical capabilities and standards, but it will also require a cultural shift and a renewed partnership between the industry and regulators. One thing is certain: drug regulation in the cloud could enhance and accelerate regulatory decision-making, and that’s good news for patients. So, let’s team up and make this vision a reality.

Take a look at this interesting article on the topic published this week in Nature Research (Publishing) review: https://lnkd.in/dCJabKH with Sanofi contributors Hilary M Malone PhD and Andrew Robertson #digital #cloud

If you type “teamwork + quote” into Google, it’s likely you’ll end up finding a great quote from Michael Jordan. No offense to the greatest basketball player of all time, but when I need nuggets of inspiration around teamwork, I just ask my Sanofi colleagues or the athletes of Team Sanofi. So, when I started thinking about teamwork as a topic for the latest edition of my Sanofi x Paris 2024 newsletter, I'm giving them the spotlight.

#paris2024 #teamsanofi #teamwork

Where will you be in early June? My body will be in Paris, but my mind will be in Chicago. The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 2021 Annual Meeting, which usually brings together thousands of people and top scientific minds at a conference center in Chicago to discuss latest research for cancer treatments, will for the second year in a row be a fully virtual event. ASCO is an important moment for the oncology community. For us, it is an opportunity to highlight the significant progress in our oncology pipeline. #science #oncology #ASCO21 #innovation