William C. Weldon

William C. Weldon
Born	(1948-11-26) November 26, 1948 Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Occupation	Business executive
Years active	1971–2012
Known for	Former chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson

William C. Weldon (born November 26, 1948) is a former chairman of Johnson & Johnson, recognized as the eighth individual to hold this position in the company's history spanning more than a century.

Early life and education

Weldon was born in Brooklyn, New York to parents employed in Broadway theatre, one as a stagehand and the other as a costume designer. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in biology from Quinnipiac University in 1971.

Career

Beginning his professional journey at Johnson & Johnson in 1971, Weldon started as a sales representative within the McNeil Pharmaceutical division. He later assumed leadership of the Ethicon Endo-Surgery segment in 1992, followed by overseeing pharmaceutical operations starting in 1998. In 2002, he was appointed CEO. During his tenure as CEO, he orchestrated significant acquisitions such as Alza and the consumer-health product division of Pfizer, which greatly enhanced Johnson & Johnson's market footprint.

In 2009, Weldon's total earnings amounted to $22.8 million, encompassing a base salary of $1.8 million, a cash bonus of $12.8 million, stock awards valued at $2.7 million, and option awards totaling $5.2 million. Despite these financial achievements, The New York Times named him among "The Worst C.E.O.'s of 2011," citing an increase in product recalls during his leadership period. His management approach has also been analyzed as part of a leadership study at Harvard Business School.

During Weldon's leadership, Johnson & Johnson's revenues increased from $32.3 billion to $36.3 billion in his initial full year as CEO (2002), with net income rising from $5.7 billion to $6.6 billion. By his last complete year in office (2011), revenues had grown to $44.7 billion while net earnings reached $9.7 billion.

Weldon stepped down as chairman on December 28, 2012, reportedly receiving retirement compensation totaling $143.5 million.

Board memberships

He holds directorship positions at JPMorgan Chase & Co., HeartFlow, ExxonMobil, Fairfax Financial, as well as serving on the board of trustees for Quinnipiac University.