Ken Frazier, Chairman and CEO, Merck & Co., speaks during a meeting of the Economic Club of New York, October 3, 2018.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
The outspoken CEO of Merck, Ken Frazier, is retiring from the company effective June 30 after almost 30 years with the company, Merck announced on Thursday.
A former attorney, Frazier led a revolt among CEOs in resigning from the American Manufacturing Council shortly after President Donald Trump’s supportive comments of white nationalist, “alt-Right” and neo-Nazi groups at a violent protest in Charlottesville, Va. in 2017.
Frazier will be replaced with the company’s CFO Robert Davis and will continue to serve on Merck’s board of directors as executive chairman “for a transition period to be determined by the board,” the company said in a statement. Frazier, one of the few Black corporate leaders in the United States, has served has Merck’s chief since January 2011.
“It has been a privilege to serve as Merck’s CEO for the past decade and to work with the most dedicated and talented employees and management team in the industry,” Frazier said in the statement Thursday. “As executive chairman, I look forward to collaborating with Rob and our board of directors to help Merck achieve even higher levels of success.”
Davis will become Merck’s president effective April 1, the company said.
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