What are the key stepping stones and career activities on the path to becoming a CEO?
Fred Hassan, former CEO of Schering-Plough and Pharmacia, and Director, Healthcare and Consumer, at Warburg Pincus, shares the top skills and potential career moves for aspiring CEOs in this Q&A interview with the MIT Sloan School of Management's Career Development Office.
For Mr Hassan’s advice, click here to read the full article.
In this article
Fred Hassan, MBA
Director, Healthcare and Consumer
Warburg Pincus
Fred Hassan is a Director at the private equity firm, Warburg Pincus. He is also a Board member of Amgen and Precigen. He is also the Chairman of Caret Group.Fred Hassan is the former Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Schering-Plough Corporation. Prior to joining Schering-Plough in April 2003, Hassan was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pharmacia Corporation – a company that was formed in March 2000 as a result of the merger of Monsanto and Pharmacia and Upjohn. Hassan joined Pharmacia & Upjohn as Chief Executive Officer in 1997. Previously, Hassan was Executive Vice President of Wyeth, with responsibility for its pharmaceutical and medical products business. He was elected to Wyeth’s Board of Directors in 1995. Earlier in his career, Hassan spent 17 years with Sandoz Pharmaceuticals (now Novartis) and headed its U.S. pharmaceuticals business. Hassan received a B.S. degree in chemical engineering from the Imperial College of Science and Technology at the University of London and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. Hassan has chaired significant pharmaceutical industry organizations including The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) and The International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Associations (IFPMA). Mr. Hassan is also a member of The Business Council. Fred Hassan’s book, “Reinvent – A Leader’s Playbook for Serial Success” was published in February 2013 by Wiley and has been discussed in many global organizations including the World Bank. In 2014 he was selected by a CNBC panel to be among the 200 people who have had the greatest influence on business in the past quarter century.
