Meet the CEO-in-waiting of the Mylan-Upjohn company

The executive tapped to lead the new company that will be created by the combination of Mylan NV and Upjohn himself joined Pfizer Inc. in October 2009 when it merged with Wyeth.

Michael Goettler, group president of Upjohn for Pfizer (NYSE: PFE), will become CEO of the estimated $20 billion revenue company when the transaction is completed sometime in 2020. He'll replace Heather Bresch, who is retiring.

Goettler, 51, who is currently based in Shanghai with Upjohn's business unit, is a native German who speaks a number of languages and has been a major driver in Pfizer's expansion in Asia and in its initiative in treatments for rare diseases. In addition to his role as group president, he is a member of the Pfizer executive committee and has also been global commercial officer, senior vice president and regional president for specialty care in Europe, as well as global president of rare diseases. He has also worked at Hoechst, Aventis Pharma and Sanofi, according to his Pfizer bio.

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