Moncef Slaoui, PhD, Operation Warp Speed's former chief advisor, was fired from his role as Galvani Bioelectronics' board chairman due to allegations of sexual harassment, the biotech's parent company GlaxoSmithKline said March 24.
Galvani Bioelectronics is a medical research company that develops bioelectronic medicines to treat chronic conditions. It was formed in 2016 via a partnership between GlaxoSmithKline and Google life science subsidiary Verily.
Dr. Slaoui had spent 30 years overseeing vaccine development at GlaxoSmithKline. The drugmaker said it received a letter containing allegations that Dr. Slaoui sexually harassed and displayed inappropriate conduct towards one of its employees, behavior that occurred several years ago when he was a GlaxoSmithKline employee.
After receiving the letter, GlaxoSmithKline's board immediately launched an investigation to determine the veracity of the allegations. The drugmaker said the investigation "substantiated the allegations and is ongoing."
"Dr. Slaoui’s behaviors are wholly unacceptable. They represent an abuse of his leadership position, violate company policies, and are contrary to the strong values that define GSK’s culture," the drugmaker said. "The company expects everyone at GSK to behave in accordance with its values, especially its leaders where its standards are the highest."
Christopher Corsico, MD, GlaxoSmithKline's senior vice president of development and current Galvani board member, has been appointed as Galvani's new board chairman.
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