Leading the Way in Vaccine Innovation

“I love vaccines; I believe fundamentally that vaccination is an instrument of public health and feel we have a very important responsibility to the greater good. I honestly believe we are engaged in a noble endeavor; vaccines save lives.”

— Brent MacGregor, president, Novartis Vaccines, U.S.

BRENT MACGREGOR stepped into his leadership role at Novartis Vaccines on January 1 of this year and, essentially, hit the ground running. With more than 16 years of global experience in an industry he describes as “vibrant and exciting,” MacGregor joined Novartis from Sanofi Pasteur, where since 1995 he held leadership positions of increasing importance, including vice president of the influenza and pneumococcal franchise; managing director, Australia/New Zealand; and most recently, managing director, Japan. Beginning his career as a sales representative, MacGregor has extensive experience in the vaccines industry spanning roles in marketing, sales, strategic planning and general management in five different countries.

Clearly, he stands well prepared to lead Novartis into new spheres of influence and success. “For me, leadership is heavily behavioral — you have to lead by example in order to instill leadership skills in your team,” says MacGregor. “I believe in a very collaborative approach that is extremely team-oriented. I also strongly believe people don’t need to wait to be empowered; if you create a culture that is supportive, people will feel empowered to make decisions and offer meaningful contributions.”

As someone who takes changes in stride, MacGregor is currently leading his entire regional vaccine team in a relocation from Cambridge, Mass., to the Novartis campus in East Hanover, N.J. Once there, he plans to build upon the current Novartis Vaccines culture, which he says promotes an entrepreneurial spirit coupled with an element of risk-taking that he thrives on. “What I hope to bring to the table as someone who has been in the industry a long time is a clear, concise view of what we’re up against in terms of competition,” he explains. “This culture suits me because I believe in a certain amount of risktaking; we’re not the biggest player in the industry, but we have an important contribution to make in U.S. public health.

Making the Case for Vaccines

As the U.S. government struggles with the ever-increasing cost of healthcare, those in the vaccine industry are well positioned to argue that by promoting preventive vaccines, public health officials can avoid the high cost of treating disease later. But, as MacGregor acknowledges, it can sometimes be a difficult argument to convey: “There are many challenges we face within the industry, including the ebb and flow of the anti-vaccine movement. In a sense, we have become victims of our own success because there has been such a significant reduction in certain infectious diseases, due to the overwhelming success of routine vaccination in the U.S., that some people don’t see a reason to continue vaccinating. Ironically, they are ignoring the fact that diseases have diminished because vaccines work.”

In recent years, vaccine complacency has been particularly pronounced when it comes to flu immunizations. With back-to-back flu seasons that were particularly mild, coupled with a perceived overreaction to the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, MacGregor says “flu fatigue” set in among individuals and healthcare providers. At a recent influenza conference, he noted that one of the ideas under consideration involves getting the five flu vaccine manufacturers in the U.S. to band together behind a single marketing message. “Instead of a fragmented approach, it may make sense to convey one key message that supports public health,” he says. “With two new strains added to this year’s vaccine, the timing may be right to help people understand the inherent risks associated with flu. The challenge is to raise awareness of the risks of the flu without scaring people.”

Meeting Industry Demand

When it comes to meeting the changing demands of the industry, Novartis Vaccines is responding with improved options in the categories of flu and meningitis.With a long history of industry leadership in the areas of innovation and technology, the company is poised to continue blazing new trails. Currently, Novartis Vaccines is anticipating the opening of a new manufacturing facility located in Holly Springs, N.C. The facility is slated to begin commercial-scale operations in 2013, and will be the first-of-its-kind U.S. facility producing cell culture-based flu vaccines. “Cell culture-based flu vaccine production is essential in terms of reducing the flu vaccine industry’s dependence on eggs,” says MacGregor. “The opportunity to bring this innovative technology to the U.S. market, from a U.S.-based facility, is especially exciting.”

In 2010, Novartis Vaccines launched Menveo, a vaccine to prevent meningococcal disease, the leading cause of bacterial meningitis. The culmination of 10 years of dedicated effort, Menveo represented an immunization milestone for millions of adolescents at risk for this often-deadly disease. Novartis Vaccines is actively working to expand the age indications for Menveo to make the vaccine available to patients as young as 2 months of age.

Also on the near-term horizon, MacGregor says the company’s research and development team is targeting meningitis B, a disease that is particularly dangerous for children; there are approximately 1,200 new cases of meningitis B every year. Of those cases, one in 10 people die and another 15 percent are left with permanent disabilities such as limb amputation.“Clinical trials are promising, and we expect to launch a vaccine within the year, beginning with Canada and the U.K.,” says MacGregor. “One of our goals is to become a much more impactful player when it comes to meningitis prevention; this vaccine would be a key component of that strategy.”

Another initiative in the Novartis pipeline involves exploring the benefits of maternal immunizations. Currently in the preclinical trial phase, the study examines how vaccinating pregnant women can protect the mother against vaccine-preventable disease, while also passing those antibodies on to the unborn child. One of the diseases being studied is group B streptococcus, common and harmless in pregnant women, but life-threatening for newborns.

A Promising Future

Always an advocate of specific and measurable goals, MacGregor says he aspires to elevate Novartis Vaccines from its current No. 5 spot among vaccine manufacturers in the U.S.; he has his sights set on reaching the No. 3 position in the coming years: “I want to bring an even greater contribution to U.S. public health; the pipeline we have currently is regarded as one of the most vibrant in the industry, so we have a solid foundation to build upon.”

According to MacGregor, Novartis plans to achieve its ambitious goals by focusing on innovative solutions that will support both customers and key stakeholders. As far as his personal ambitions, MacGregor maintains that his passion for the industry is what inspires him daily: “I love vaccines; I believe fundamentally that vaccination is an instrument of public health and feel we have a very important responsibility to the greater good. I honestly believe we are engaged in a noble endeavor; vaccines save lives.”