Read the Conversation
Conversation highlights:
- Company Vision & Principles: BeOne was built as a global oncology company to accelerate the time from laboratory to patient and demonstrate that a faster and more sustainable model of innovation is possible.
- Priorities in Spain & Portugal: The focus is on rapid access and sustainability, with dedicated departments improving the patient journey.
- Personalized Medicine: BeOne is committed to advancing personalized treatment approaches, ensuring that each patient benefits from therapies tailored to their specific needs and tumor characteristics.
- Innovation & AI: Initiatives such as the AI-powered project “Palabras que rompen fronteras” highlight BeOne’s use of technology to improve patient communication and care.
- Clinical Trials: The company has expanded the number of clinical trials in Spain, enabling more patients to benefit from early access to innovative therapies.
EF: Could you elaborate on the priorities that BeOne has in Spain and Portugal?
CG: BeOne is a global cancer company built differently to deliver innovative medicines faster to more patients, which for us means shortening the time between the laboratory and the patient through a unique R&D model and a relentless focus on access; in Iberia this translates into active collaborations with the Ministries of Health in Spain and Portugal so innovation truly reaches people, because innovation means nothing if patients cannot access it.
EF: How does the patient-first approach translate into concrete actions in Spain and Portugal?
CG: Beyond accelerating approvals and reimbursement, we have created the ‘Innovative Solutions for Healthcare’ program. An initiative that goes “beyond the pill” thanks to high-value projects co-created with hospitals to improve the patient journey and outcomes. Initiatives like this serve all patients within a disease area, not only those treated with our medicines, reflecting our commitment to broader system impact.
On the other hand, our P&R records are much lower than the benchmark in Spain, and the reimbursement of our medicines has occurred faster than the industry, showing that we are truly walking the talk and delivering on our claims around speed and access.
EF: The rebranding to BeOne is approaching a year now. Why was this shift important, and what message are you sending with this new name?
CG: The evolution to BeOne Medicines reflects unity and a deep commitment to the fight against cancer, emphasizing that such a complex disease cannot be tackled by a single company or institution. Our goal is to unify efforts and work together with institutions and stakeholders both within and across countries, marking an evolution in our vision and setting a new model for others to follow.
Collaboration is not just essential; in cancer, it’s a must. By aligning institutions and stakeholders to move together, we believe we can transform the industry and set a model of unified purpose that advances patient impact over the long term.
EF: Spain is seen as a clinical trial hub by many industry experts. How do you assess Spain’s opportunity and its importance to BeOne Medicines?
CG: Spain is a very strategic country for clinical trials due to the quality of research and professionalism of investigators. In recent years, we have conducted more than 40 clinical trials in oncology in Spain, involving more than 400 centers and more than 700 patients. Investment in R&D is not only growing, but is also diversifying into preclinical and early phases. We began with phase 3 studies and now include early-phase and even first-in-human trials, underscoring Spain’s capability to advance novel treatments.
Our main focus is cancer, including lung, gastric, and breast cancers, as well as hematologic malignancies. We are advancing several mechanisms—protein degraders, antiBCL2, and BTK inhibitors—particularly oriented to B-cell malignancies such as leukemias and lymphomas, with first-in-human programs already established in Spain.
The reception to our work has been very positive. Early and first-in-human trials bring innovation directly to patients and centers, which is highly valued in Spain. Beyond the science, our operating model enhances efficiency and collaboration, which stakeholders appreciate for its practical impact on trial execution and patient access.
EF: Which therapeutic areas are top priorities, and how are outcomes evolving?
CG: The focus is hematology—B-cell malignancies, including leukemias and lymphomas—where research and innovative medicines have improved outcomes substantially. Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) remains chronic and not curative, leaving room to further improve durability, quality of life, and patient-centered measures as expectations and empowerment grow. We have also marked a turning point in blood disorders such as Waldenström’s macroglobulinemia and marginal zone lymphoma.
EF: Could you elaborate on how your operating model allows you to achieve your incredible results?
CG: We operate relying on an internal clinical operations team that works directly with hospitals to ensure quality and shorten timelines. This direct interface improves communication with researchers, reduces intermediaries, and ultimately produces better outcomes and operational efficiency.
We are now over 130 employees across Spain and Portugal, the result of focused growth anchored in mission and values from recruitment onward. The framework centers on hiring the best people for shared purpose, sustaining motivation, and fostering inclusive, cross-functional collaboration where every voice counts.
EF: What guiding principles shape day-to-day decisions and long-term direction?
CG: Patient-first is our ‘company’s reason why’ North Star, applied consistently from talent selection to operational choices and market strategy. We challenge the status quo to serve patients while delivering strong performance, with the conviction that prioritizing people, patients, and employees drives results. Internal plans are being launched to ensure teams are supported, engaged, and able to do their best work, reinforcing a culture where patient-first and people-first principles guide decisions.
EF: How do you position BeOne as a key organization to work for?
CG: Each of our posted positions attracts hundreds of applications, reflecting strong interest in joining the company and the reputation it is building in Spain and Portugal. Recently, an influential Spanish economic magazine (Actualidad Económica) ranked BeOne among the 30 best places to work, advancing from roughly 47 last year to 29 this year, which speaks for itself regarding the work culture and engagement we are building.
There is heavy emphasis on developing employees and ensuring happiness at work, acknowledging the many hours invested and aiming to create the conditions for everyone to do their best. The organization’s purpose is compelling and energizing, making the effort worthwhile and sustaining momentum through a clear mission.
EF: As balance improves, what advice would you give women aiming for leadership roles?
CG: Identify genuine leadership role models and seek a mentor, regardless of gender, who can support growth and accompany the career journey with practical guidance and perspective. Above all, cultivate a people-centered vision, recognizing that leadership impact is delivered through teams and that focusing on people is essential to grow into leadership.
EF: No 2025 conversation is complete without AI. How is AI shaping BeOne Medicines today?
CG: Internally, AI tools are widely used to enhance efficiency and support teams, though today’s applications are only a small preview of the greater importance AI will have in the future. Externally, several initiatives use digital tools and virtual formats to engage stakeholders and demonstrate how new technologies can drive real change and improve processes and outcomes.
Internally, extensive digital tools are in place to boost team efficiency and streamline work, while externally, several initiatives leverage virtual and technology-enabled formats to reach and support broader audiences. The goal is to showcase how new technologies tangibly change outcomes, not just processes, bringing innovation into day-to-day interactions with patients and partners.
We recently made a CLL disease-awareness campaign that used AI to translate the emotions detected on a relative’s face into a letter expressing what they felt but could not say, which garnered major awards in Spain, Latin America, and internationally.
Working with the national leukemia patient group, three patient–relative pairs viewed personal memories while AI captured facial emotions, which were then transformed via emotion analysis and a generative model into letters read aloud, helping families bridge communication barriers. This initiative focused on human connection, demonstrating AI’s value in emotional understanding and support rather than solely in scientific acceleration. It was groundbreaking because it combined emotion recognition, generative text, and patient-organization partnership to address a real barrier: relatives struggling to find words for loved ones living with cancer.
Soon, we will launch a new initiative in which innovation will play a leading role in raising awareness about the importance of language in cancer.
EF: What are the achievements that should be celebrated first as BeOne Medicines scales in Spain and Portugal?
CG: First and foremost, the impact on patients. Placing patients first means celebrating how quickly access and reimbursement have enabled real benefits from our medicines, alongside the growth of clinical trials and the number of patients treated. Second, the team. There is pride in the culture and the new way of working we have built together; the team has fully engaged with the project and is demonstrating a different model for execution and collaboration. Celebrating milestones acknowledges the progress made, recognizes the impact on patients, and develops the team; it also sets a bar to aspire to going forward, ensuring continuous improvement and sustained ambition.
EF: Is there a final message to emphasize?
CG: Health systems need practical pathways to accelerate innovation and keep it sustainable over time. Bringing innovation quicker and cheaper remains unsolved, and BeOne’s model shows that another way is possible with tangible results.
Cancer touches nearly everyone; few can say they have no friends or family affected, and experiencing it up close brings urgency and clarity about our purpose. Working in a company that provides innovation to patients, and accelerating that innovation, creates a deep alignment with personal purpose and the mission to deliver what truly matters in Spain and Portugal.
