Tim Stow Aids Galderma’s Expansion as a Public Company Moving Into the Biologics Space

“A lot of companies may be growing, but I’m not sure that many are growing like we are.”

In April of 2024, Tim Stow got to see some of the tangible success of the compliance program he’d rebuilt since coming to Galderma. The company went public in a big way, becoming the largest IPO of 2024’s first quarter with $2.6B in funding, earning the 2024 EMEA IPO of the Year award in the process. The company would go on to report record net sales for the rest of the year.

This is the kind of growth Stow is talking about. The IPO was a landmark moment for Galderma, but for Stow, it felt more like a continuation or a next chapter, and less a brand-new story.

“We’re working for a company that’s growing very fast, and that brings a lot of intensity and complexity with it,” the global head of ethics and compliance explains. “But whether we’re public or private, we needed a fit-for-purpose compliance program. What’s changed is perhaps our profile, but the rules and commitment remain the same from our perspective.”

Since rebuilding the compliance program following Galderma’s spin-out from Nestlé, Stow has focused on creating the modern, agile framework that should support Galderma’s increasing complexity as it ventures into new markets and territories.

Those new markets include another watershed moment, with Galderma’s entry into the biologics space, taking on market-heavyweights with its own Nemluvio. The first-in-class biologic expands the company’s therapeutic dermatology portfolio in key disease areas like prurigo nodularis and atopic dermatitis.

“The launch of Nemluvio was a big deal,” Stow says. “Compliance was obviously at the forefront of everything: pre, peri, and post-launch. Our job isn’t just to ensure that we meet all regulatory and ethical obligations, but to meet them in a scalable and evolving capacity. Wewanted to ensure that we were fully ready right out of the gate.”

Galderma is headquartered in Lausanne and Zug, Switzerland, but it’s the company’s US footprint that is evolving most significantly. The company announced earlier this year the establishment of its US-headquarters in Miami, but that’s also only part of the story. The company has a significant compliance presence in Boston, nested within the company’s prescription drug business division. Galderma US also operates in Texas and southern California.

“Four years ago, our US business was very much based in Dallas,” Stow explains. “We now have more key locations throughout the country, with Boston and Miami, growing especially fast. As we expand, we’re embedding key compliance personnel alongside the rest of the business. We’re not just a pharma, prescription-only company. We’re big in aesthetics and consumer healthcare. Compliance needs to be everywhere.”

Stow now splits his time between Dallas, Boston, Miami, and Zug. He racks up the frequent flyer miles, but again, for Stow it feels like a natural continuation of where he wanted his organization to go. He’s greatly encouraged by the risk and compliance councils (R&CCs) that are helping drive engagement, clarity, and efficiency across the company.

“We’ve completely revamped our R&CCs to make the meetings dynamic and relevant, spaces for real discourse with the business,” Stow explains. “The results we’ve seen are greater ownership of compliance at every level of the organization. The business owns compliance—we don’t. That’s how it’s supposed to be.”

That cultural shift is reinforced by what Stow calls calculated pre-messaging. Before new policies or programs are rolled out, his team invests time helping operational leaders grasp the underlying principles and rationale. Stow says if people understand the “why,” the policies are more likely to take root. Those professionals can then translate them for their specific audiences.

“It’s not just about sending out guidance, it’s about building comprehension,” the executive explains. “I understand that these may sound like rudimentary exercises, but when you engage in these practices authentically, you see real change.”

Efficiencies are also derived from structure. That can be a challenge for a compliance network that is a blend of dedicated compliance personnel, dual-role legal-compliance officers, and compliance liaisons across countries and geographies where Galderma operates. The goal is to maintain alignment among these tiers and push for optimal standardization.

Stow says he wants every compliance liaison from Chile to the Philippines to deliver the organization’s unified compliance model that they can build on locally should they see fit. But there should never be a question about the base-level compliance standards on which everything else is built.

Along the way, new tools like risk-identification platforms and stakeholder engagement systems can improve monitoring and communications across regions. Stow says the tools help Galderma to be smarter, not just larger. But those tools need to be kept in perspective, as they are tools to enhance what Stow calls “the human element,” the people behind every process.

“You cannot discount the importance of having the right team,” Stow says. “They’re making judgement calls every day, adapting continuously in a very fast-moving environment. “What anchors us is our shared sense of purpose. Things are growing and moving faster and faster. We have to be there to ensure there’s partnership in making that growth happen safely and responsibly. That’s what compliance is.”