Dive Brief:
- José Almeida will become Chairman of the Board and CEO of Baxter International effective January 1, 2016. He is succeeding Robert Parkinson, who is leaving after 14 years as CEO.
- Almeida was most recently CEO of Covidien, a medical supplies company, which was acquired by Medtronic in January for $50 billion.
- Almeida has a great deal of experience in medical-device companies and units, as well as a long history of being an effective deal-maker.
Dive Insight:
As Parkinson prepares to leave his position, Baxter could use solid leadership as it focuses on its significantly pared down areas of focus. After spinning off Baxalta, Baxter (which still owns 19.5% of Baxalta) is focused on kidney-dialysis machines and drug-delivery systems.
With solid experience in medical devices, deal-making and taking risks, Almeida was a favored candidate for the job among shareholders, including Third Point LLC, which owns 10% of Baxter's stock.
Although Almeida came from outside, he is seen as an ideal candidate for this position at Baxter. Apparently shareholders think so—the stock was up 1.7% on the news.