Grifols, the Barcelona-based pharmaceutical and blood-plasma products group, has appointed Ester Masllorens Llinàs as an independent member of its board of directors.
She fills the seat left by Enriqueta Felip Font, who stepped down on 19 June after seven years on the board.
The new director
Masllorens has more than 20 years of experience in the international pharmaceutical industry, with a strong background in research and development. As an independent director, she has no ties to the company’s management or major shareholders, and is expected to bring an outside view to the board’s decisions.
The departing director
Enriqueta Felip is one of Spain’s leading oncologists. She is head of the medical oncology service at Vall d’Hebron University Hospital in Barcelona and leads the lung cancer group at the Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology.
She studied medicine and surgery at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, where she also completed her doctorate in medical oncology. She taught there as an associate professor from 2010 to 2019, later became a professor of medicine at the University of Vic, and since March 2024 has been a full professor of medicine at the Autonomous University of Barcelona.
During her time on the Grifols board she was a member of the sustainability, communication and reputation committee.
Board changes
Grifols has made a number of changes to its governance in recent years as it has worked to reduce its debt and reassure investors. Appointments of independent directors with industry experience are part of that effort to strengthen oversight of the company’s strategy, particularly in research and development.
