San Diego, California, United States, July 2026 — Acadia Pharmaceuticals has appointed Carl Segerstrom as its Chief People Officer. As a member of the executive leadership team, he will lead the company’s global people and culture strategy, supporting Acadia’s next phase of growth as it advances innovative therapies for neurological disorders and rare diseases.
Carl Segerstrom brings more than 25 years of global human resources leadership experience spanning the pharmaceutical and life sciences industries, with deep expertise in talent strategy, leadership development, organizational transformation, succession planning, and culture building.
Prior to joining Acadia Pharmaceuticals, Carl spent more than a decade with Merck & Co., where he most recently served as Senior Vice President, Human Resources for the company’s Human Health Division. Earlier, he held several global leadership roles including Senior Vice President & Chief Talent Officer, Vice President, HR Chief Talent and Strategy Officer, and Vice President, Human Resources – Merck Manufacturing Division, leading enterprise-wide talent strategy, leadership development, learning, performance management, succession planning, analytics, and HR support for one of the company’s largest global businesses.
Before Merck, Carl spent over six years with MSD, serving in senior HR leadership roles across Europe, Canada, Asia Pacific, Japan, and emerging markets. His responsibilities included leading regional HR strategy, talent management, global recruiting, staffing, and manufacturing HR while supporting large-scale organizational transformation and leadership development initiatives across multiple international markets.
Earlier in his career, Carl held leadership positions with Schering-Plough, where he served as Regional HR Director, Supply Chain and Quality – Asia Pacific.
He also built significant international HR experience during his tenure with Pfizer and Pfizer Health AB, holding progressively senior HR leadership roles across Australia, Japan, Asia, and Europe, supporting manufacturing, HR operations, organizational redesign, and business partnering.
About Acadia Pharmaceuticals
Acadia Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapies for neurological disorders and rare diseases. Its commercial portfolio includes FDA-approved treatments for Parkinson’s disease psychosis and Rett syndrome, while its research pipeline advances therapies for Alzheimer’s disease psychosis, Lewy body dementia psychosis, and other areas of significant unmet medical need.
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