Glaxo Rising Star Connelly Under Pressure as Drugs Falter

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Deirdre Connelly became a rising star at GlaxoSmithKline Plc by helping the company survive a scandal. Her future may be clouded by a more basic challenge: Glaxo’s struggle to sell medicine in its biggest market.

Glaxo’s U.S. pharmaceutical sales have fallen 16 percent since 2009, when Connelly, 54, took over as head of North American pharmaceuticals. While a decline was predicted because drugs are losing patent protection, sales of new therapies intended to replace lost revenue have been disappointing.