Never stop learning: How Astellas US is building a stronger leadership culture

How do high-performing companies navigate change and empower their teams? In our ongoing series, “Never Stop Learning,” we explore how organizations are investing in their people to meet today’s most pressing business challenges.  

This time, we’re highlighting Astellas US, the US affiliate of the global pharmaceutical company Astellas Pharma Inc., to learn how a newly formed leadership team tapped Kellogg Executive Education to drive transformation. 

Pharmaceutical maker Astellas US, based in Northbrook, Illinois, is much more than a $5.7 billion division of a global life sciences company. It’s a team of people united by a shared purpose: to bring transformative therapies to patients who need them most. Offering treatments spanning oncology, ophthalmology, urology, immunology and women’s health, the company is driven by science and grounded in compassion. 

But delivering on that mission requires more than innovation in the lab. It also demands leadership that is aligned, responsive and deeply connected. That’s why, during a pivotal moment of organizational change, Astellas turned to Kellogg Executive Education to help its newly formed leadership team grow stronger, together. 

“At the end of all of this is a patient who is waiting for us to be as efficient as we can be with getting our products to market. That's always the driving force for all of us who choose to work in healthcare,” says Vanessa Rath Menton ’05 MBA, US commercial head of the company’s VYLOY prescription oncology medicine. 

“This time at Kellogg was an opportunity for us to come together as a team and figure out our best path forward in terms of making this US organization as efficient and effective as possible,” she says.  

Read on to hear about how professional development from our world-class faculty helped the Astellas team build trust and lead with renewed clarity and confidence. 

A new team, a new opportunity

The Astellas participants included its U.S. CEO, Michael Petroutsas, and a newly formed team of 20 top business leaders, many of whom manage a P&L. “We were looking for different opportunities to connect as a leadership team through a shared learning experience,” Menton says. 

The team had recently completed a global engagement survey that surfaced several key priorities: 

• Reestablishing a positive working culture after significant organizational change 
• Clarifying decision-making processes and empowering teams 
• Leading through change with empathy and effectiveness 
• Developing financial acumen across a diverse leadership group 

To address these needs, Astellas evaluated programs that could equip them with a common language and a set of frameworks, and ultimately empower them to tackle those priorities head-on. 

A custom curriculum for change

Working closely with Kellogg faculty and program designers, Astellas co-created a program that directly addressed each of their leadership challenges. “We were very forthcoming in terms of what we were trying to address, and the Kellogg team took all of our feedback and curated a truly specialized experience focused on our success,” said Menton.  

Here are just a few of the highlights from the packed, three-day agenda: 

Strategic Decision-Making in Today’s Challenging Business Environment

Led by Professor Victoria Medvec, this session introduced the DAI framework — Decider, Advisor, Informed — as a tool for clarifying roles and responsibilities in decision-making. “We’ve challenged ourselves to say out loud five times a day: ‘I trust you to make this decision,’” said Menton. “We’ve all been holding each other accountable to doing that and driving home the change we wanted to take out of these courses.” 

Overcoming Resistance that Awaits New Ideas

Professor David Schonthal guided the team through his fuel and friction model, helping them understand the psychological forces that drive or hinder change. The team is already applying these learnings to evolve its market research and inform communication and marketing strategies, Menton says. 

Building Stakeholder Trust & Leaders as Chief Culture Architects 

Presentations from Professor Harry Kraemer and Professor Fred Harburg covered values-based leadership and emphasized daily self-reflection as a leadership habit. “These sessions reminded us to take stock of how we’re showing up each day, and consider what we can do differently tomorrow,” Menton says. 

Strategic Financial Management

With several participants managing their own P&L, it was essential to build a more consistent financial fluency across the group, which included representatives from across commercial — both leaders of brands and operational units. Professor Mitch Petersen led a hands-on workshop on strategic financial planning. “It gave us a common language,” says Menton. 

Bonus teambuilding sessions

• To round out the experience, the team added a few bonus but equally valuable sessions: 
• A Super Bowl advertising analysis with Professor Tim Calkins that sparked lively discussion and team bonding. 
• A group dinner in Evanston on the final evening, plus networking time each night of the program. 

From the classroom to the office

The learning didn’t stop when the program ended. Each participant was paired with an accountability partner and regularly checked in to discuss how they’re applying the lessons. “It keeps the course content alive outside of the classroom,” said Menton. “We’re helping each other move the needle forward to implement what we’ve learned.” 

The impact has already been felt across the organization. In the month after their classroom experience, the team had already applied lessons learned from Kellogg faculty to its five-year financial planning process.  

“It was such a comprehensive program over just a couple of days,” Menton reflects. “It’s typically hard to get a team like ours together out of the office for one day, never mind three. But making that investment, both financially and time-wise, has been so worth it.” 

Coming home to Kellogg

For Menton and three other Kellogg alumni who attended, the experience was especially meaningful. In attendance were Emily Sitrin Mason ’04 MBA, head of US patient access and affordability solutions; Mike Senical ’10 MBA, commercial brand strategy lead for prescription hot flash medication VEOZAH; and Steve Steinhagen ’07 MBA, head of US commercial operations.  

“It stirred up so much gratitude,” Menton said. “To come back to Kellogg with colleagues I admire and learn together was incredibly unique and special.” 

She even reconnected with Professor Medvec, whom she hadn’t had the chance to take a class with during her MBA. “I joked with her that I played her in the Special K performance during my second year! But it was so fun and rewarding to learn from her.” 

Interested in a custom professional development program for your company? Learn more about Kellogg Executive Education or send an inquiry to our team to start the conversation.  

Read more in this series

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Never stop learning: How a fighting force stays on the cutting edge

Never stop learning: How Grant Thornton is developing its people