Arthur D. Collins, Jr.

Arthur D. Collins, Jr. is the retired Chairman of the Board of Medtronic, Inc., and formerly served the Company as President and Chief Executive Officer.

Infobox_Celebrity
name = Art Collins


caption =
predecessor=William W. George
successor= William A. Hawkins
birth_date =
birth_place = Lakewood, Ohio
death_date =
death_place =
occupation = Advisor; Former Chairman & CEO of Medtronic, Inc.
industry = medical device
salary =
networth =
spouse = Anne
website =
footnotes =

Family Background

Art Collins was born in 1947 in Lakewood, Ohio. He was the first of Dr. Arthur D., Sr.’s and Irene Collins’ three children. His father, a physician, and his mother, a registered nurse, introduced him to the medical profession at an early age. As a young boy, when he wasn’t playing football, basketball or baseball, he would tag along as his father made weekend rounds to see patients at the hospitals where he practiced. Even though he decided not to follow in his father’s footsteps, Mr. Collins never lost his passionate interest in medicine, the people who practiced it, and in the patients who ultimately received care.

Educational Background

Mr. Collins attended the public school system in Rocky River, Ohio and graduated as a National Honor Society member in 1965. He received a Bachelor of Science degree and a Doctor of Laws honorary degree from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Mr. Collins also holds a Master of Business Administration Degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania where he was a member of the undergraduate faculty. He was cited by The Wall Street Journal as one of Wharton’s three “most famous” MBA graduates, and he has returned to the Philadelphia campus often to give lectures and convocation addresses to the MBA class. [ [http://125th.wharton.upenn.edu/events/economicsummit/speakers.html 125 Years of Wharton ] ]

Work Experience

Mr. Collins assumed the role of Chief Executive Officer of Medtronic, Inc. in April, 2001 and became Chairman of the Board in April, 2002. He retired from Medtronic in August 2008. He was elected Chief Operating Officer and member of the Board of Directors in 1994 and President in 1996. He joined the company in 1992 as Corporate Executive Vice President and President of Medtronic International with responsibility for all Medtronic operations outside the United States.

Medtronic is the largest medical technology company in the world with revenues annualizing over $15 billion. During Mr. Collins’ tenure at Medtronic, revenue and earnings per share grew at annual compound growth rate in excess of 15 percent, while the company’s market capitalization increased from about $4 billion to about $60 billion. Doing business in more than 120 countries, Medtronic’s employment currently is about 40,000. In addition to having one of the most impressive records of sustained, superior financial performance, Medtronic is annually cited as one of the 100 Best Companies To Work For In America by Fortune Magazine. Medtronic also is continually cited as one of the most admired companies in industry and has been singled out for its strong corporate governance and commitment to philanthropy and community involvement. It is interesting to note that the most important statistic tracked within the company is not found on the balance sheet or the income statement – it is that every five seconds someone, somewhere in the world receives a Medtronic product that either significantly improves or saves their life.

Mr. Collins joined Medtronic from Abbott Laboratories where he had been Corporate Vice President with responsibility for Abbott's worldwide diagnostic business units since 1986. He began his 14-year career with Abbott in 1978 as Manager of Corporate Planning and Development and moved to the Diagnostics Division a year later where he subsequently held a number of general management positions in the United States and Europe. He was elected a corporate officer in 1989.

Before joining Abbott, Mr. Collins served as a naval officer from 1969 to 1973. After completing Officer Candidate School as a Distinguished Naval Graduate, he served as an officer on board a destroyer and was qualified as Officer of the Deck. He was honorably discharged with the rank of Full Lieutenant. From 1974 to 1978 Mr. Collins was a consultant with Booz, Allen & Hamilton in Chicago. While as Booz, Allen, he conducted major assignments in the areas of business strategy development, marketing, organization planning, financial analysis and financial systems design. [ [http://media.www.whartonjournal.com/media/storage/paper201/news/2001/09/10/News/Alumnus.Of.The.Week.Arthur.D.Collins.Jr-90847-page5.shtml Alumnus of the Week: Arthur D. Collins Jr. - News ] ]

Board, Civic and Community Activities

Mr. Collins serves on the Board of Directors of The Boeing Company [ [http://www.boeing.com/corp_gov/board_directors.html Boeing: Corporate Governance - Board of Directors ] ] , Cargill, Inc [ [http://www.cargill.com/news/news_releases/2006/060509_andersonboard.htm UnitedHealth Group's Richard Anderson Elected to Cargill Board of Directors ] ] . and U.S. Bancorp [ [http://sec.edgar-online.com/1998/03/16/15/0001047469-98-010010/Section8.asp US BANCORP DE - USB Proxy Statement (definitive) (DEF 14A) NAME AND TITLE ] ] . He is a member of the Board of Overseers of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania [ [http://www.wharton.upenn.edu/whartonfacts/advisory_boards/bdovers.cfm Board of Overseers - The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ] ] and the Board of Visitors for the Farmer School of Business at Miami University [ [http://www.fsb.muohio.edu/corporate-partners/board-of-visitors/profile Corporate Partners : Board of Visitors ] ] . He also was a previous Chairman of AdvaMed, the medical technology industry association, and has served on the boards of numerous civic organizations. He is a member of the President’s Export Council and recently was a member of the Department of Commerce Advisory Panel on Measuring Innovation. He and his wife, Anne, have two adult daughters and live in Chicago. The couple remains active in a number of community and volunteer activities.

Thoughts on Leadership and Growth

Mr. Collins co-hosted CNBC’s Squawk Box and has testified before Congress on a number of key healthcare policy issues. He also has represented the industry in policy discussions and negotiations in many countries outside the United States.Fact|date=March 2008

In an interview with Wharton@Work, Mr. Collins discussed five principles that should be considered by aspiring leaders. They were [ [http://executiveeducation.wharton.upenn.edu/ebuzz/0608/seniormanagement.html E-Buzz 06-08 — Senior Management ] ] :

#Articulate and act as a role model for your organization’s mission, making it a call to action for employees while fostering a strong and sustainable corporate culture.
#Formulate and effectively communicate the corporate vision, strategy, and goals -- and then allocate necessary resources and ensure that plans are in place to achieve the stated objectives.
#Set realistic short and long-term expectations that balance stretch and achievability -- and then deliver on your commitments.
#Encourage change and innovation, while promoting quality and continuous quality improvement -- as Jim Collins said, “Good enough never is.”
#Ensure that capable employees are hired, developed, rewarded, retained, and encouraged to work together as a team -- always remembering that employees are a company’s most precious and valuable resource.

He shared some of his thoughts on the subject in a byliner he wrote in October, 2003 for CEO Magazine entitled GROWTH COMPANIES PLAY OFFENSE TO WIN – IN GOOD TIMES AND BAD. [CEO Magazine, October, 2003 Edition]

References

ee also

*List of corporate leaders

External links

* [http://www.medtronic.com/corporate_governance/directors.html Medtronic, Inc] , Executive Bio and Photo
* [http://www.wharton.upenn.edu/alumni/wharton125/events/finale/keynotes_collins.html The Wharton School] , Keynote Speaker Bio