What about Scientists leading Pharma?

I've expressed my discontent with accountants and lawyers leading pharmaceutical companies. Those feelings have only intensified after reading a recent article in Fortune about the events and circumstances of Jeff Kindler's ouster as Pfizer CEO earlier this year. How can somebody who had virtually no experience in the industry lead a company that expresses the desire, the sincerity of which can be debated, to find cures for debilitating and deadly diseases?

Bob Lutz has gotten some attention for his recent book on how MBAs have messed up the auto industry. Given that a recent report suggesting that doctors are better at running hospitals than business people (shocking), he could be on to something with the role that number crunchers who lack industry specific expertise have played in the decline of American manufacturing. The Fortune story details how a neophyte in pharma wrecked an industry leader. Lutz makes the case that similar things have happened in Detroit. I'm sure similar tales could be told in more than a handful of the biggest (not I didn't say best) companies in this country no matter the industry.

Reading the Fortune story about Kindler comes at an interesting time for me. This story shines a bright light on two major features of my life that I have been reconsidering lately. One is how I'm going about earning my MBA (and whether the effort is worth my time). It's pretty clear that I will never be taken seriously outside of a lab without something to suggest that I can do more than stand at a bench. Whether or not the route that I'm taking to obtain my business credential will impact its value remains to be seen. The second element is how long I want to remain a Pfizer employee. There are advantages to working for Pfizer, primarily potential opportunities outside of the lab, but those advantages come with working for a bloated bureaucracy that isn't showing signs of being able to do much more than acquire other companies. Even those other opportunities would likely require moving to Pennsylvania or New Jersey. My wife would be much more receptive to a move it was to some place with pleasant climate that was near a sandy beach. I've committed to seeing how my recent reorientation impacts my career opportunities. I'll see how this goes and finish up my MBA foundations classes. That won't stop me from looking for opportunities near a beach...