SAN DIEGO — Acadia Pharmaceuticals has announced the appointment of Carl Segerstrom as chief people pfficer, effective July 6. Carl will lead the company’s global people and culture strategy, supporting its next phase of growth as a leading neurological and rare disease company focused on advancing therapies for patients with significant unmet needs. He will serve as a member of Acadia’s executive leadership team.
“Carl is a proven global leader with a strong track record of building high-performing organizations and shaping culture to enable business performance,” said Catherine Owen Adams, chief executive officer of Acadia. “His experience driving transformation in complex, science-driven organizations will be instrumental as we continue to scale and advance our mission for patients.”
Carl joins Acadia with more than 25 years of experience in global human resources leadership across the biopharmaceutical industry, including a 17-year career at Merck. Most recently, he served as Senior Vice President, Human Resources at Merck’s Human Health Division, supporting a $50+ billion global business spanning 80 countries.
Over the course of his career at Merck, Carl has held a range of senior leadership roles, including Chief Talent Officer, where he was responsible for global talent strategy, executive succession planning, leadership development, and workforce transformation. Earlier in his career, he held human resources leadership roles at Pharmacia, Schering-Plough and Pfizer across multiple international markets. Carl brings deep expertise in organizational transformation and talent strategy across global organizations, including leading large-scale workforce capability shifts, digital and AI-enabled initiatives, and global operating model redesign. He has also led talent acquisition organizations hiring more than 10,000 employees annually and overseen workforce planning across globally diverse teams.
“I am excited to join Acadia at this important stage of growth,” said Mr. Segerstrom. “The company’s focus on serving patients and advancing innovation is compelling, and I look forward to partnering with the leadership team to strengthen our culture, develop talent, and support the company’s continued success.”
Carl holds a Master’s degree in Human Resources Management from Uppsala University in Sweden and has completed executive development programs at institutions including Harvard Business School and the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
