Press release, 23 March 2026
The LEO Foundation has appointed Tina Sejersgård Fanø, Executive Vice President at Novonesis, and Adam Steensberg, CEO of Zealand Pharma, to its Board of Trustees at the Annual Meeting on 20 March 2026. Three employee-elected members have also joined the Board.
New board members
- Tina Sejersgård Fanø is Executive Vice President, Planetary Health Biosolutions at Novonesis, where she has worked for more than 25 years. She has extensive experience in strategic leadership and business transformation and has held senior roles in research, production, marketing, sales, and business development. She has board experience from several companies and from Innovation Fund Denmark, where she previously served as Chair. Tina holds a Master’s degree in Biochemistry from the Technical University of Denmark.
- Adam Steensberg is CEO of Zealand Pharma and has more than 20 years of experience across the private and public sectors. Before becoming CEO in 2022, he served as Chief Medical Officer and Head of Research & Development at Zealand Pharma. Previously, he held leadership roles in clinical research at Novo Nordisk and worked as a clinician at Rigshospitalet. He is a medical doctor and holds a Doctor of Medical Sciences degree from the University of Copenhagen and an MBA from IMD.
- Employee-elected board members: Anne Krogh Gæmelke, Ole Malta Bigand and Niels Højsager Bennike were elected to the Board following the LEO Group employee election in January 2026.
Lars Olsen, Chair of the LEO Foundation Board, says: “Tina Sejersgård Fanø and Adam Steensberg are accomplished leaders with deep experience spanning research, innovation and commercial execution in life science. Together with the rest of the Board, their expertise will be highly valuable as the LEO Foundation continues to pursue its ambitions across ownership, philanthropy, and investments – with the purpose of paving the way for curing skin diseases.”
He adds: “I would also like to warmly welcome the new employee-elected members to the Board. They bring important perspectives from across LEO Pharma, which are essential for the Board’s work and an integral part of the Foundation’s governance.”
Other board changes
Cristina Lage steps down as part of the regular board succession, having served on the Board since 2016. Lars Green, a board member since 2020, has decided to step down to focus on his other board commitments.
The three new employee-elected board members are replacing Allan Carsten Dahl (board member since 2015), Franck Maréno (board member since 2021) and Jannie Kogsbøll (board member since 1998).
Lars Olsen says: “On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Cristina Lage and Lars Green for their significant efforts and dedication. We have benefited greatly from their expertise, and both have played instrumental roles in shaping the LEO Foundation into what it is today. I would also like to extend my sincere thanks to the outgoing employee-elected members for their strong engagement and valuable contributions.”