Alex Gorsky is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Johnson & Johnson. Alex is the seventh person to serve as Chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson since it became a publicly traded company in 1944.
Alex began his Johnson & Johnson career as a sales representative with Janssen Pharmaceutica in 1988. Over the next 15 years, he advanced through positions of increasing responsibility in sales, marketing, and management.
In 2001, Alex 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.
Alex 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 segment. In January of 2011, he was named Vice Chairman of Johnson & Johnson’s Executive Committee. Alex became Chief Executive Officer on April 26, 2012 and Chairman of the Board on December 28, 2013.
A longtime advocate of diversity and inclusion, Alex 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. Alex is also a member of the Business Council and the Business Roundtable.
Alex is a member of the Board of Directors of IBM, the Congressional Medal of Honor Board of Directors, and the Board of Directors of the National Academy Foundation. He was recently given the Joseph Wharton Leadership Award and the CADCA Humanitarian of the Year Award, as well as an Honorary Doctorate from Thomas Jefferson University.
Alex 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. Alex earned a Master of Business Administration degree from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1996.