The Importance of External Positioning in the CEO Job

In this second episode of our Voices of CEO Excellence interview with Ken Frazier, the former executive chairman and CEO of Merck candidly reflects on how he managed past crises.

Frazier discusses his decision-making process around the litigation trial concerning Merck’s pain-relief drug Vioxx, and how his employees ensured that a potentially crippling cyber attack did not stop production of critical medicines. He also speaks about how his most important advisor, his wife Andrea, has kept him grounded. 

Frazier spoke with Vik Malhotra, former chairman of McKinsey’s Americas region and co-author of last year’s New York Times bestseller, CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest and Steve Van Kuiken, a former leader in our Life Sciences Practice and global leader of McKinsey Technology. 

Listen to other episodes in our Voices of CEO Excellence series:

• Blackstone’s chairman, CEO, and cofounder, Stephen Schwarzman
• Morgan Stanley’s chairman and CEO, James Gorman

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