AstraZeneca’s Shaun Grady is an affable dealmaker whose talents – honed over three decades inside the group – are being put to the test as global business development head to help ensure Britain’s second-biggest drugmaker can successfully transform itself, its therapy focus and pipeline. He tells In Vivo about his role leading AZ’s transaction execution, due diligence and alliance and integration management, while overseeing its collaborative “externalization” program, licensing and partnering, M&A and divestments.

The company launched three diabetes drugs in 2014, just after breaking off a joint venture with Bristol-Myers and taking over full control of the business. U.S. President Paul Hudson talked about the evolution of AstraZeneca’s diabetes business – and where it stands today – in a recent interview.

Positive trial results buoy the British pharma’s late-stage pipeline as it battles to keep its independence from Pfizer. The saxagliptin/dapagliflozin combo is a cornerstone of the diabetes franchise.