Teva dissolves unit in management restructuring

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries has outgrown its simplistic corporate structure, so it's creating a new one. Rather than operating through just two geographical divisions--the U.S. and everyplace else, i.e. Teva International Group--the company will now field four regional units to cover the globe.

The restructuring abolishes Teva International, which had been headed up by Chaim Hurvitz, son of Teva's former chairman Eli Hurvitz. CEO Schlomo Yanai said Chaim Hurvitz will get another job within the company, pointing out that during his tenure that group's sales grew to $2 billion from $275 million. 

North and South America will become one division, headed up by Teva North America president and CEO William Marth. The European division will still be headed up by Gerard Van Odijk, but he'll report directly to the top now. A third division will cover non-E.U. countries in Europe, plus Africa and the Middle East, including Teva's home country of Israel; Allan Oberman will hold those reins. And Teva chief Yanai will oversee the new Asian division for now, supervising operations in Japan, China and India.

Teva has been expanding rapidly--and aims to grow even more, with a stated goal of $31 billion in sales by 2015. (To put that in perspective, 2009 revenues were $14 billion)*. It's been snapping up smaller companies as part of that effort; most recently, it agreed to buy Germany's Ratiopharm, which has some penetration in Oberman's new division as well. And it's still digesting the big buyout of U.S.-based Barr Pharmaceutical.

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* Editor's note: Story originally read $14 million. We do regret this error.