Japan-based medtech company Olympus Corporation has announced the appointment of a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) aimed at accelerating its ongoing transformation efforts in the medtech space.
The Board of Directors has decided unanimously to appoint Bob White, a former Executive Vice President and President, Medical Surgical Portfolio for Medtronic, as a successor to Yasuo Takeuchi, Olympus’ Director, Representative Executive Officer, President and CEO, effective June 1, 2025.
White will also be proposed as a candidate for election to the Board at Olympus’ General Meeting of Shareholders scheduled to be held in June 2025.
He most recently served as Executive Vice President and President, Medical Surgical Portfolio for Medtronic until April 2024. Before then, he was Senior Vice President and President of Medtronic Asia Pacific, based in Singapore where he had responsibility for APAC as well as Japan.
During his tenure at Covidien, he held the positions of President of Emerging Markets and President of Respiratory and Monitoring Solutions. He has seen numerous innovation programmes and led several R&D initiatives and M&A transactions within complex business portfolios. His close engagement with the market and customers has enabled him to maintain a strong understanding of physician needs.
Prior to joining Medtronic, White held leadership positions at GE Healthcare, Merge Healthcare and Healthcare Division, IBM. Throughout his career in the medtech industry, he has played a pivotal role in improving the lives of patients around the world through the transformation of healthcare delivery.
