Post by Rene Georg Ott

2025 marks my 10th anniversary with AstraZeneca I’m inspired every day by our vibrant, science-driven, patient-focused, and people-centric culture. Working on an exceptional portfolio of medicines and helping bring them to clinical practice is truly rewarding. Since joining in 2015, I’ve had the privilege to grow across five exciting roles in country, regional, and global functions: 1. Medical Director Austria 2. Medical Director Oncology Europe-Canada 3. Head of Global & US Medical Information and Scientific Communications 4. Head of DDR Breast Cancer 5. Head of Small Molecules Breast Cancer Throughout this journey, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to meet people who trusted, challenged, mentored, coached, and collaborated with me. It all started back in school, where two amazing professors – Johann Mischlinger and Peter Sevcik – sparked my curiosity for life sciences and gave me my first chance to run an independent science project. At university, I was lucky to learn from and work with Anna de Raadt, Günther Daum, Michael Freissmuth, Veronika Sexl, Erwin F Wagner, Mariano Barbacid, Marcos Malumbres, Jeffrey Ravetch, Ralph Steinmann, Michel Nussenzweig, Karl Dane Wittrup, and many more who shaped my path. Wolfgang Rettig, Eric Borges and Paul Adam were instrumental in my transition to the pharmaceutical industry and my early development as a leader. Tamas Velich and Gerald Hirn helped me move from global R&D into Medical Affairs. Ana Kostova and Mark Fladrich believed in my passion and potential – and brought me into AstraZeneca. Since then, I’ve had the honor to be mentored and supported by inspiring leaders such as Bruce Cooper, Delphine Moreau, Nathalie Varoqueaux MD PhD, Andrew Fariello, Andy Barnett, Andrea Mugan and Iskra Reic. A special thank you to Kong Daniela, Brigitta Berger, Michael Hobbs and who played a key role in my growth as a leader. During my early studies, Armin Temel, Johann Kern, and Christoph Zenzmair were true teammates – thank you for your friendship and drive. My uncle Kurt Egger was one of my earliest and most impactful mentors – teaching me to believe in myself and dream big, even as a kid. Thank you, Kurt! And of course, none of this would have been possible without the support of my family – my parents (Georg Ott) my wife (Birgit Ott) and my children. You’ve all inspired my dedication to people development and leadership. Thank you for being part of my journey.