DUBLIN, Ohio — Jon Giacomin is replacing Michael Kaufmann as chief executive officer of Cardinal Health Inc.’s pharmaceutical segment, effective November 11, at which time Kaufmann will become Cardinal’s chief financial officer.

Kaufmann succeeds Jeffrey Henderson, who is retiring as CFO but will retain oversight of Cardinal Health China and work with Cardinal’s leadership team on important initiatives, the company said.

Giacomin currently is president of U.S. pharmaceutical distribution, responsible for warehouse operations at 22 distribution centers and pharmaceutical packaging operations. He joined Cardinal 12 years ago in the pharmaceutical packaging business. He later served as senior vice president of inventory management in Cardinal’s former health care supply chain segment.

Before coming to Cardinal, Giacomin held engineering and operating roles for Griffith Micro Science and Sterigenics. He also served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy, where he held an engineering role. He currently serves on the boards of trustees of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores Foundation and Cardinal Health Foundation.

“I’m thrilled that [Kaufmann’s promotion] allows us to bring Jon Giacomin into the pharmaceutical segment leadership role,” said George Barrett, Cardinal’s chairman and chief executive officer. “We are privileged to have the opportunity to draw from the deep well of our internal talent.”

Kaufmann has served as chief of the pharmaceutical segment since 2009. He joined Cardinal in 1990 and has held various senior operational, sales and finance positions, including group president of the medical business in the former health care supply chain operation, after serving as that segment’s chief financial officer.

Before joining Cardinal, he had a career in audit and consulting with Arthur Andersen.
Kaufmann also is a member of the executive committee of the boards of the Healthcare Distribution Management Association and NACDS.

“Over the past 24 years, Mike has demonstrated a track record of high performance across many roles for Cardinal Health. His unique blend of financial acumen and extensive operational experience make him ideally suited to take the position of CFO,” Barrett said.

Cardinal is a distributor of pharmaceuticals and other medical supplies and equipment. Its pharmaceutical division provides supply chain services, including branded and generic prescription and over-the-counter drug distribution. It also franchises Medicine ­Shoppe and Medicap retail pharmacies. Its medical division distributes medical, laboratory and surgical supplies and provides logistics, consulting and data management services to a range of customers that includes retail pharmacies, hospitals and doctor’s offices.

The ways that prescription drugs are purchased and shipped have been dramatically altered by a series of high-profile partnerships, including a 10-year deal signed last year in which Cardinal rival AmerisourceBergen Corp. agreed to collaborate with Walgreen Co. and Alliance Boots GmbH. Previously, Walgreens had been one of Cardinal’s largest customers, accounting for about 21% of its business.

Cardinal mitigated that loss with last year’s acquisition of AssuraMed, an Ohio-based seller of home medical supplies, for $2.07 billion. The deal gave Cardinal access to a new market ­— ­AssuraMed distributes more than 30,000 products to more than 1 million patients across the United States, who buy its products for at-home treatment of diabetes, wounds, incontinence and other medical ­conditions.

And in December 2013, Cardinal and CVS Caremark Corp. unveiled a plan to form a joint venture that they called the largest generic drug sourcing entity in the United States. Called Red Oak Sourcing LLC, the Foxborough, Mass.-based venture went operational in July.