Biogen Expected to Cut 1,000 Jobs, Earnings Report Says

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In its second-quarter earnings report, Biogen announced a layoff of around 1,000 employees in a cost cutting measure as it prepares to release Leqembi, its new Alzheimer’s drug. The company stated that their new ‘Fit for Growth’ program is expected to generate $1 billion in gross operating expense savings. Of these savings, an estimated $300 million will be reinvested into a combination of product launches and R&D programs, leaving $700 million in net operating expense savings by 2025.

“In the second quarter, Biogen continued to advance groundbreaking science with the FDA approval of two first-in-class therapies for Alzheimer's disease and ALS, while also delivering on our base business expectations,” said Christopher A. Viehbacher, President, CEO, Biogen, in the earnings report. “Biogen’s business is in transition. Accordingly, we have taken a bottom-up view to shift our resources to the areas of greatest value creation. While we will be making significant investments in our newly prioritized pipeline and new product launches, we will also need to invest less in other areas which are no longer growing. With these changes, I believe that Biogen will be better positioned to maximize its growth opportunities going forward.”

Reference: Biogen reports second quarter 2023 results and reaffirms full year 2023 guidance;

LEQEMBI launched in the U.S. Biogen. July 25, 2023. Accessed July 25, 2023. https://investors.biogen.com/static-files/74c918e8-7ec5-4ffb-b0b1-5ad4459b05ed