“FIND COMPANIES THAT ARE TRULY INTERESTED IN YOUR CAREER DEVELOPMENT AND HAVE MISSIONS THAT YOU STRONGLY BELIEVE IN.”
The
Medicine Man Richard Clark ’68 CHAIRMAN, MERCK
When Richard Clark ’68 took over as CEO of pharmaceutical giant Merck, the once-reigning top drug maker was facing declining profits, thousands of lawsuits and a shortage of innovative new products to penetrate an increasingly competitive market. Six years later, under Clark’s insightful leadership, Merck is back on top, reclaiming its status as one of the world’s pre-eminent pharmaceutical companies. With the launch of five new drugs, including the groundbreaking vaccine Gardasil and popular diabetes drug Januvia, Merck is benefiting from a revitalized focus on scientific research. “The most important aspect of what we’ve been able to accomplish in the last six years is staying focused on what made Merck successful for the last 120 years, and that’s innovation,” Clark said. Innovation is thriving at the newly expanded company, fresh from a multimillion-dollar merger with Schering-Plough that was spearheaded
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by Clark. In addition to boasting a broader range of products, Merck doubled the number of potential medicines in phase-three development— the last stage of research required before new drugs can gain approval from the Food and Drug Administration—from nine to 18, a monumental feat, according to industry experts. “We were looking for a compelling way to extend Merck’s deep roots in research by expanding our pipeline of products and increasing our geographic reach,” Clark said. “Today, Merck is a stronger, more diverse company better-positioned for the future.” The merger, only the second in Merck’s history, capped off an impressive run as CEO for Clark, who has since retired from the position to serve as the company’s chairman. Starting his career at Merck as a quality-control inspector, Clark spent more than 30 years rising through the company’s ranks, giving him an insider’s understanding of the corporate culture. Clark considers this to be an advantage for CEOs who
“really have to understand the fabric, the culture and the DNA of the companies they’re leading.” When it came time to name his successor, Clark turned to fellow Merck insider Ken Frazier, who, like Clark, studied history in college. “History majors make good CEOs,” laughed Clark, who credits his liberal arts education at W&J with honing his communication and critical-thinking skills. A first-generation college student, Clark remains modest about his role in the drug maker’s success, largely attributing his contributions to the unparalleled passion he has for the company’s mission. “Merck is a very important company, and as a caretaker of the company, I’m just passing through,” Clark said. “In naming my successor, I wanted to make sure that I handed that baton off to another person with the same passion and dedication for this company, because millions of patients throughout the world are depending on us.”