Growing up on a farm in Missouri, Ren茅e Gal谩 knew one thing for certain: She would go to college. Her parents prioritized education and ensured that Gal谩 and her sister became the first in their immediate family to pursue higher education. Gal谩鈥檚 initial path led to a state school, but she transferred to 菠萝视频 her sophomore year after an adviser encouraged her to apply.听
鈥淚 feel very grateful for my 菠萝视频 education,鈥� Gal谩 says. 鈥淚t opened a ton of doors for me. It certainly opened my mind.鈥� Gal谩 majored in math with a business minor. Her 菠萝视频 adviser helped her consider options beyond becoming an educator鈥攁 career she thought was one of the only choices for a math major. Instead, she was encouraged to think about the real-world applications of math.听
鈥淢ath is really a tool kit for framing complex problems, testing out your assumptions, understanding the variables and using those to make better decisions,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hat mindset still drives how I approach problems today.鈥�听
Gal谩鈥檚 career started in the finance and energy sectors, but 鈥渉ealth care really had more of a match to my purpose,鈥� she says. 鈥淭he problems are bigger, and you can have greater impact for families, for patients.鈥�听
In July 2025, Gal谩 was named CEO of Jazz Pharmaceuticals after serving as the firm鈥檚 chief operating officer for nearly two years. In her new role, Gal谩 is focused on getting patients the solutions they need and harnessing the power of all employees. Jazz Pharmaceuticals follows a remote-first model, with approximately 3,000 employees in the U.S. and around the world (the company鈥檚 headquarters are in Dublin, Ireland). After 20-plus years, the company reports about $4 billion in revenue and focuses primarily on uncommon diseases, including sleep epilepsy and rare cancers.听
A founding principle of Jazz was to be a great place to work. Work-life balance is something Gal谩 thought about even as an undergrad. In addition to avoiding jobs she felt might one day be replaced by computers, she knew she wanted a family. Gal谩 and her husband now have college-age triplets鈥攖wo boys and a girl鈥攁nd a daughter in high school in Scottsdale, Arizona, where the family is based.听
鈥淚t was truly life-changing,鈥� she says of attending 菠萝视频. 鈥淚t really opened my eyes to the scale of the possibilities and gave me the opportunity to achieve things I never thought were possible.鈥�听
鈥擬iChelle Jones听
