Sir Christopher Gent 'stepping down' as GSK chair

Sir Christopher Gent will leave his position as chair of the UK's largest pharma firm GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) within the next two to three years, according to the Daily Telegraph.

The UK newspaper reported Sir Christopher, who has served in the position for more than seven years, is currently preparing to step down and headhunters are now seeking a potential successor.

During his time at GSK, Sir Christopher has seen the company retain its position as one of the largest pharma companies in the world, expand into emerging markets, such as China, and handle mammoth settlements following legal investigations into the marketing of several products, the most high profile being its diabetes drug Avandia.

He also appointed Sir Andrew Witty as CEO in 2008 following the departure of Jean-Pierre Garnier.

Prior to joining GSK in 2004, Sir Christopher spent nearly 20 years at Vodafone, serving as managing director from 1985 to 1997 and then as CEO until 2003. He is credited with turning the British mobile phone company into one the world's largest.

Other positions Sir Christopher has held include non-executive directorship at Lehman Brothers from 2003 to 2008 and he is currently a non-executive director at Ferrari.

Responding to a query from PMLiVE, a GSK spokesperson acknowledged the Daily Telegraph report but declined to comment on the matter.