Astellas Australia appoints Guillaume Pfeiffer as GM

Astellas has appointed Guillaume Pfeiffer as General Manager of Australia, with the pharmaceutical company’s new country leader set to take up the role on 12 October 2026.

Pfeiffer joins Astellas from Recordati Rare Disease Australia, where he served as General Manager from March 2023. During his tenure, he led business transformation initiatives, delivered key market access outcomes and helped build a more agile, patient-focused organisation. Before joining Recordati, Pfeiffer spent almost two decades at Novartis, holding senior positions across global marketing, oncology, haematology and CAR-T therapies.

Enver Erkan, Head of APAC at Astellas, said Pfeiffer’s appointment comes at an important juncture for the Australian business.

“Guillaume brings strong international experience, a deep understanding of healthcare systems and a values-led leadership style that aligns closely with Astellas’ commitment to patients,” said Erkan. “His experience in business transformation, market access and building high-performing teams will be valuable as we continue to strengthen our presence in Australia and deliver on our ambition to turn innovative science into value for patients.”

Bringing more than 20 years of pharmaceutical leadership experience, Pfeiffer has worked across commercial strategy, market access, launch excellence, medical strategy and government affairs, spanning senior local, regional and global positions in Australia, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. His experience covers a broad range of therapeutic areas, including specialty care, rare diseases, oncology, haematology, and cell and gene therapy.

Pfeiffer said he was looking forward to joining Astellas Australia and working with its team to continue advancing outcomes for patients.

“No one person or team can create change alone. We have the greatest impact when we work together, listen, challenge old ways of thinking and stay focused on patients,” said Pfeiffer. “Astellas has a real opportunity to help improve outcomes for people living with serious diseases and conditions, and I am excited to be joining the team on this mission.”

Pfeiffer succeeds Nirelle Tolstoshev, who departed Astellas in March.

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