On March 31, Jim Swanson had been EVP and Group CIO at Johnson & Johnson for six months. In any other year, he would be executing on a transformational business technology strategy designed for efficiency, innovation, and growth. This year, however, Swanson faced a challenge that eclipsed all of that: Manage a global pandemic that impacted every one of the $82 billion company’s 132,000 employees, most of its 60 countries, and each of its major divisions, from consumer packaged goods, to medical devices, to pharmaceuticals.
For Swanson, the pivot from transformational leadership to crisis management occurred earlier than it has for most.
“For us, the crisis started at least three months ago when it first hit China,” says Swanson. “China is a very important market for us, so we were concerned about two things: the safety of our employees living there, and continuing the flow of life-saving medicines into and out of the country.”
Read More from This Article: How Johnson & Johnson IT is managing a global crisis
Source: News