This article has been updated with statements from AdvaMed and Tim Schmid.
Dive Brief:
- Ashley McEvoy, Johnson & Johnson’s Worldwide Chairman of MedTech, plans to step down to pursue other opportunities, the company announced late Monday.
- McEvoy has worked for J&J for the past 27 years and was named chairman of the company’s MedTech segment five years ago. McEvoy will stay with J&J until the first quarter of 2024 to support the transition to new leadership.
- In a LinkedIn post, McEvoy described her time with the company as the “career of a lifetime” but did not specify what she had planned next. RBC Capital Market analysts wrote in a research note to investors that they were “surprised to learn about Ashley's departure given her long tenure at [J&J] and suspect the opportunity is likely one she couldn't pass up.”
Dive Insight:
McEvoy started her career with J&J as an assistant product director for Tylenol and joined the MedTech business in 2009 as worldwide president of Ethicon. McEvoy then led its vision and diabetes care businesses, before becoming worldwide chairman of the company’s $27 billion MedTech segment.
In the past five years, McEvoy said J&J MedTech has expanded its growth from 1.5% to 8%, and deployed more than $22 billion in capital in acquisitions. It has also entered new markets including heart failure, vision and robotics — the latter of which it started from scratch.
“I've had the career of a lifetime, leading five companies within J&J and raising five children along the way. I’ve always taken on new challenges, driven by curiosity, a deep and lifelong passion for healthcare and making it possible for people to lead better lives – and this company has allowed me to do that beyond my greatest imagination,” she wrote on LinkedIn.
McEvoy was also named chair of medtech trade association AdvaMed earlier this year.
“I know I speak for everyone on the Board and the entire AdvaMed team when I say we will miss working alongside her, but we look forward to her next chapter, which I know will be exciting and impactful,” AdvaMed CEO Scott Whitaker said in an emailed statement.
J&J CEO Joaquin Duato said in a statement that McEvoy has led a “significant transformation” of J&J’s MedTech business, which has become an increasing focus for the multinational company after its spinoff of its consumer health business.
“Her leadership of people and commitment to their development has been a hallmark of her tenure,” Duato added. “I wish her all the best in the next chapter of her career.”
Tim Schmid, who has been chairman of J&J MedTech Asia Pacific, will become new worldwide chairman of MedTech.
During his tenure, J&J MedTech’s Asia-Pacific region has delivered above-market growth, strengthened its leadership position across multiple businesses, and grown as a center for experimentation, digital innovation and talent, according to the company.
McEvoy said she was “beyond confident that Tim is the right leader to take the business forward.”
“Building on my 30-year career at Johnson & Johnson, I look forward to leading our incredible team of associates around the world who are propelling our MedTech business into the next era of healthcare,” Schmid said in a statement.
