Novo CEO urges staff to embrace more customer-focused culture

By Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen

COPENHAGEN, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Novo Nordisk's CEO Mike Doustdar on Tuesday urged employees to be more customer-focused, as the Wegovy maker seeks to regain ground in the fast-growing obesity drug market.

The push comes as investors question whether Doustdar can restore Novo's lead after the Danish drugmaker lost momentum to rival Eli Lilly in a market that analysts expect could exceed $100 billion a year by 2030.

Novo was the first major mover in the weight-loss drug market when it launched Wegovy in the United States in 2021. But it has since fallen behind Eli Lilly, which moved more quickly to sell its Zepbound treatment directly to consumers.

Doustdar was speaking at a town hall meeting at the company's headquarters near Copenhagen that was broadcast globally and attended by media.

The chief executive, who took the helm in August last year, on Monday unveiled a new cultural strategy, dubbed "The Novo Way", alongside plans to change the company's day-to-day name and logo.

"We would like to become a better and a bigger company. A company that does more for many more, both patients and consumers," Doustdar said.

He outlined four new principles: customer obsession, competitiveness, clarity, and care and integrity.

Novo is due to address investors at a capital markets day on Monday.

(Reporting by Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen. Editing by Louise Rasmussen and Mark Potter)