The Story Of An Accidental Life Science CEO

By Rob Wright, Chief Editor, Life Science Leader
Follow Me On Twitter @RfwrightLSL

"It was never my intention to be CEO,” says Bernard Coulie. In fact, when the Belgian-trained M.D., Ph.D. arrived in the U.S. in the late 1990s, he had only thought about being a doctor. “Coming from Europe to be a gastroenterologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, was a big deal,” he relates. Though much of his time at the Mayo was split between clinical practice and lab/bench-type research, he’d also done some sponsored R&D for the likes of Regeneron and Novartis. And before he knew it, J&J came knocking with an opportunity to enter industry — back in Europe. “I talked well, was able to organize, got promoted into management, and before long was overseeing European R&D related to internal medicine.”