Gaining the edge

Born in Colombia, Cuellar-van Dijl gained a business administration degree in the US before moving to the UK. She joined GSK in 2007, at the beginning of her ACCA studies, and, with the exception of a four-year spell with Emirates Group, has climbed steadily through the finance ranks of the huge pharmaceuticals multinational. It is an impressive achievement that has taken a lot of work and commitment.

Landing a job in Dubai

From the outset, she says, she knew she had to be prepared to be highly mobile. In 2010, she was flying regularly to India where many of GSK’s finance operational functions are outsourced. ‘I used to have layovers in Dubai and got to know the GSK finance directors there quite well, so when my husband was offered a job in Dubai, I asked them if there were any opportunities going.’

Her work in Dubai included successfully implementing SAP consensus forecasting in the Middle East, which won her a company award for outstanding contribution. When her role covering the Gulf region plus Turkey and Pakistan was moved to Istanbul in 2016, though, she elected not to relocate and accepted redundancy instead, spending the next four years with Emirates Group.

When Covid hit, the airline took a ‘last in, first out’ approach but her close contact with former mentors at GSK facilitated a smooth transition back to the company. ‘That’s the power of networking,’ she says. ‘I came back to help with the separation of the consumer and pharma businesses and haven’t looked back since.’ GSK completed the demerger of its consumer business, now known as Haleon, in 2022.

Something special

There is a well-defined finance career ladder to the top of GSK but the first challenge is getting recognised as someone with potential. ‘You definitely need to be a talent,’ she says, ‘but you also need to have a differentiator, like someone who is good at adapting. Once you’re part of that pool, it’s a matter of where you want to go.’

A typical route to finance leadership at GSK tends to start with single-country responsibility in a relatively small jurisdiction, and complexity and responsibility is added with each new posting. ‘If you put in the effort, they will too,’ she says. ‘GSK really values talent.’

Her first FD-level assignment was two years in her native Colombia. ‘That was my opportunity to tick the FD box,’ she says. ‘It was exciting to be there as a family, and it gave me that edge to eventually handle a five-country cluster, which is what I’m doing now.’

She is now regional CFO for the Gulf cluster, covering the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman, after applying for the role and competing against 30 other candidates. ‘It wasn’t easy – people want to work in Dubai.’

Her priority as regional CFO is to make sure that resources are used effectively. The Middle East operations of GSK launch a new product every four months on average, which is faster than many other regions. ‘We are very innovative and that’s something we’re very proud of,’ she says. ‘But I always say to my team that sometimes we need to be the finance controllers. We have to control the taps because there is a limit to resources. That means we challenge every business case.’

Commercial and strategic

The back-office finance work is carried out in the regional shared service centre in Karachi, leaving her team of six in Dubai to focus on business partnering.

Her biggest customer, she says, is the general manager. ‘This is the core of commercial finance these days. My financial controller is based in Pakistan and I close the books virtually. I speak more to the general manager here than I speak to my own boss. It’s a very commercial, strategic role.’

Pricing at GSK, as at other pharma companies, is under pressure, particularly in general medicine (general medicine sales, which account for roughly a third of worldwide revenue, fell by 9% in the second quarter of 2026). GSK agreed with the US government late last year to reduce the price of prescription medicines, notably its asthma inhaler, but margins are also being squeezed by generic competition.

Revenue from speciality medicines, by contrast, is increasing. ‘It’s a matter of trying to put money where it’s going to give us the best return. That’s what we’re seeing now with our innovations in oncology and haematology,’ she says.

For young accountants hoping to make it to the top of a multinational she has clear advice. ‘Don’t underestimate any little opportunity that you get, because that can lead to bigger things,’ she says. ‘And always be mobile: it’s easy to get comfortable in one place, but take a leap of faith and just do it.’

As far as her own journey with GSK is concerned, there is much more to come. ‘I’ve been in this role for two and a half years now, and my manager is already starting to ask, where do you want to go next?’