After $1Bn manufacturing issues, Weldon to make way as J&J picks insider Gorsky for CEO
This article was originally published in Scrip
Executive Summary
Johnson & Johnson has announced that its CEO of the past 10 years, Bill Weldon, is to stand down in April, making way for Alex Gorsky, current head of the group's medical devices and diagnostics division. It is not clear if Mr Weldon's departure was forced by the string of manufacturing quality issues and product recalls that have knocked $1 billion off J&J's sales, but succession planning had been going on for some time. Mr Weldon will stay on in his existing role as chairman of the board of directors.Mr Gorsky was one of two internal candidates being groomed as potential successors to Mr Weldon. He and Sheri McCoy, who runs the pharmaceuticals and consumer product groups of the US healthcare giant, were both named vice-chairs of the executive committee back in January 2011 as part of the process, which also looked at outside candidates. Mr Weldon described the decision as the conclusion of a "rigorous, thorough and formal multi-year process".