Eli Lilly to cut 3,500 jobs globally

The company also revealed that it will be shuttering its Bridgewater research and development office in New Jersey along with the Lilly China Research and Development Center in Shanghai.

The closures will be part of the company’s move to streamline its pharmaceutical research and development activities.

Through its actions, Lilly expects to focus resources more efficiently on its drug development programs and also in realizing nearly $500m in the form of annualized savings starting from next year.

Lilly says that the streamlining efforts are part of a larger productivity plan being implemented to enhance its cost structure with a particular focus on fixed costs.

Lilly chairman and CEO David A. Ricks said: “To fully realize these opportunities and invest in the next generation of new medicines, we are taking action to streamline our organization and reduce our fixed costs around the world.”

"The actions we are announcing today will result in a leaner, more nimble global organization and will accelerate progress towards our long-term goals of growing revenue, expanding operating margins and sustaining the flow of life-changing medicines from our pipeline."

According to Rick, Lilly had launched eight medicines in the last four years and has the potential to bring two more to the market by the end of 2018.

As far as the redundancies are concerned, Lilly says that most of them are likely to come from a voluntary early retirement program in the US.

The remaining redundancies, it says, will be made through closures of certain sites along with other expected workforce reductions.