Alex Gorsky
Alex Gorsky (born May 24, 1960) is the Executive Chairman of Johnson & Johnson. He is the seventh person who served as chair and CEO of Johnson & Johnson since it became a publicly traded company in 1944. Early life. Gorsky holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., and spent six years in the U.S. Army, finishing his military career with the rank of captain. He earned an Executive Master of Business Administration degree from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1996. Career. Gorsky began his career at Johnson  & Johnson as a sales representative with Janssen Pharmaceuticals in 1988. Over the next fifteen years, he advanced through positions of increasing responsibility in sales, marketing, and management. In 2001, he was appointed president of Janssen, and in 2003, he was named Company Group Chairman of Johnson & Johnson's pharmaceuticals business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Gorsky was accused of being involved in the sale of the antipsychotic medication Risperdal, for which Johnson & Johnson later suffered multi-million dollar penalties in several US states. The Department of Justice argued that Gorsky "was actively involved" in the Risperdal fraud, which  involved the illegal marketing of the medication to children and the elderly, despite FDA warnings. Gorsky was also accused of being actively involved in an illegal kickback scheme involving Risperdal and Omnicare, the largest supplier of pharmaceutical drugs to nursing homes. Gorsky left Johnson & Johnson in 2004 to join the Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, where he served as head of the company's pharmaceuticals business in North America. He returned to Johnson & Johnson in 2008 as company group chairman for Ethicon Inc. In September 2009, he was appointed worldwide chairman of the Medical Devices & Diagnostics segment. In January 2011, he was  named vice chairman of Johnson & Johnson's executive committee. Gorsky became chief executive officer on April 26, 2012, and chairman on December 28, 2012. A longtime advocate of diversity and inclusion, Gorsky has been named one of the "100 Most Inspiring Leaders" by "Pharma Voice". He is the executive Sponsor of two Johnson & Johnson employee resource groups, the Women's Leadership Initiative and the Veteran's Leadership Council. Gorsky is a member of the Business Council and the Business Roundtable. Gorsky is a member of the board of directors of IBM, Apple Inc., the Congressional Medal of Honor board of  directors, and the board of directors of the National Academy Foundation. In 2014 Gorsky was given the Joseph Wharton Leadership Award and the CADCA Humanitarian of the Year Award, an Honorary Doctorate from Thomas Jefferson University, as well as JRF's ROBIE Achievement in Industry Award. In 2021, he ranked second, with a salary of $23.14 million, on the list of highest-paid CEOs in healthcare according to Becker's Hospital Review.