Myrtle Potter
Chief Executive Officer at Sumitovant Biopharma, and former President & COO at Genentech
SPEAKER FEE RANGE: $30,000–$38,000 [FEE NOTE]
TRAVELS FROM: Georgia
RELATED TOPICS: Black Speakers, CEO & Executive, Healthcare Expert, Healthcare Motivation, Women in Business
Myrtle Potter is a best selling author and one of America’s foremost and accomplished healthcare leaders and experts. Myrtle has dedicated three decades to serving the healthcare needs of patients and consumers through her leadership of some of America’s most successful global healthcare companies. She was a vice president, at Merck, president at Bristol-Myers Squibb and later was named president and chief operating officer of Genentech, the world’s biotechnology powerhouse, committed to developing powerful therapies for cancer, autoimmune diseases most successful biotechnology company.
Myrtle Potter champions the right for people to have control over their unique, personal journey through the healthcare system.
Myrtle Potter champions the right for people to have control over their unique, personal journey through the healthcare system.
Myrtle Potter is a best selling author and one of America’s foremost and accomplished healthcare leaders and experts. Myrtle has dedicated three decades to serving the healthcare needs of millions of consumers through her leadership of some of America’s most successful global healthcare companies. She was a vice president, at Merck, president at Bristol-Myers Squibb and later was named president and chief operating officer of Genentech, the world’s biotechnology powerhouse, committed to developing powerful therapies for cancer, autoimmune diseases most successful biotechnology company.
In 2005 all of that came to an abrupt, shocking halt. Myrtle suffered a tragic, near-death experience in the healthcare system. After recovering and reflecting, Myrtle was inspired to completely change the course of her professional work. She decided to leave her corporate role and embark on a journey to combine her vast experience as healthcare expert, patient and caregiver to champion the needs of individuals struggling to navigate the U.S. healthcare system. Through her broad media presence Myrtle provides guidance, tools and resources that help millions of Americans navigate the U.S. healthcare system.
Myrtle Potter champions the right for people to have control over their unique, personal journey through the healthcare system.
With her deep understanding of the healthcare industry’s inner workings, personal experience of the challenges that confront individuals trying to secure the right resources and make the right healthcare decisions, and a compassionate, compelling personality, Myrtle is uniquely positioned to serve as America’s preeminent consumer healthcare guide. As a result she has earned her reputation as the Trusted Voice in Healthcare ™.
Myrtle’s voice is heard by millions of Americans as a featured healthcare commentator and guest host on a number of CNBC television programs including Squawk Box, The Call, Power Lunch and Closing Bell. Myrtle can also be seen on Accent Health Television, the nations largest health education TV network delivering CNN-produced programming to doctor waiting rooms since 1995.
Whether on television or on a stage in front of thousands, Myrtle’s girlfriend-next-door style makes big, serious topics approachable and easy to understand.
Myrtle is a woman of humble beginnings. She grew up in the dusty, desert town of Las Cruces, New Mexico – one of six children born to a social worker mother and military veteran turned entrepreneur father.
Armed with a strong family foundation and a solid education, from her first healthcare industry job as a selling adult disposable diapers as a sales rep for Procter and Gamble, to her role as a board director for billion dollar multinational corporations, Myrtle’s thirty-year career has been marked by success. Myrtle’s business leadership has been hailed by America’s most influential business publications, including BusinessWeek, the Wall Street Journal, FORTUNE Magazine, TIME Magazine, Forbes, Black Enterprise Magazine and The Harvard Business Review. Myrtle is also referenced in more than twenty business and leadership books.
myrtle-potter-media
Myrtle’s accomplishments have also been recognized by being named to a number of the top recognition lists including three appearances on FORTUNE magazine’s Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Business, Black Health Magazine’s 25 Most Influential African Americans in Healthcare, Glamour Magazine’s Everyday Icon and the Wall Street Journal’s 50 Women to Watch.tle is a graduate of The University of Chicago.
Myrtle is an on-air business contributor and co-host for CNBC on a number of programs including Squawk Box, Power Lunch and Closing Bell. She is also a sought-after speaker on life sciences, healthcare and business leadership topics.
Myrtle was named to FORTUNE Magazine’s list of Most Powerful Women in Business on three separate occasions. Her business and healthcare leadership has been hailed by America’s most influential business publications, including BusinessWeek, The Wall Street Journal, FORTUNE Magazine, TIME Magazine, Forbes, Black Enterprise Magazine and Harvard Business Review. Myrtle is also referenced in more than twenty business and leadership books. Myrtle is a graduate of The University of Chicago.
Myrtle is the proud mother of two young adults, a graduate of the University of Chicago and a co-author of the Amazon.com #1 best seller, Living Proof: Celebrating the Gifts that Came Wrapped in Sandpaper (2011). She lives in Northern California.
In 2005 all of that came to an abrupt, shocking halt. Myrtle suffered a tragic, near-death experience in the healthcare system. After recovering and reflecting, Myrtle was inspired to completely change the course of her professional work. She decided to leave her corporate role and embark on a journey to combine her vast experience as healthcare expert, patient and caregiver to champion the needs of individuals struggling to navigate the U.S. healthcare system. Through her broad media presence Myrtle provides guidance, tools and resources that help millions of Americans navigate the U.S. healthcare system.
Myrtle Potter champions the right for people to have control over their unique, personal journey through the healthcare system.
With her deep understanding of the healthcare industry’s inner workings, personal experience of the challenges that confront individuals trying to secure the right resources and make the right healthcare decisions, and a compassionate, compelling personality, Myrtle is uniquely positioned to serve as America’s preeminent consumer healthcare guide. As a result she has earned her reputation as the Trusted Voice in Healthcare ™.
Myrtle’s voice is heard by millions of Americans as a featured healthcare commentator and guest host on a number of CNBC television programs including Squawk Box, The Call, Power Lunch and Closing Bell. Myrtle can also be seen on Accent Health Television, the nations largest health education TV network delivering CNN-produced programming to doctor waiting rooms since 1995.
Whether on television or on a stage in front of thousands, Myrtle’s girlfriend-next-door style makes big, serious topics approachable and easy to understand.
Myrtle is a woman of humble beginnings. She grew up in the dusty, desert town of Las Cruces, New Mexico – one of six children born to a social worker mother and military veteran turned entrepreneur father.
Armed with a strong family foundation and a solid education, from her first healthcare industry job as a selling adult disposable diapers as a sales rep for Procter and Gamble, to her role as a board director for billion dollar multinational corporations, Myrtle’s thirty-year career has been marked by success. Myrtle’s business leadership has been hailed by America’s most influential business publications, including BusinessWeek, the Wall Street Journal, FORTUNE Magazine, TIME Magazine, Forbes, Black Enterprise Magazine and The Harvard Business Review. Myrtle is also referenced in more than twenty business and leadership books.
myrtle-potter-media
Myrtle’s accomplishments have also been recognized by being named to a number of the top recognition lists including three appearances on FORTUNE magazine’s Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Business, Black Health Magazine’s 25 Most Influential African Americans in Healthcare, Glamour Magazine’s Everyday Icon and the Wall Street Journal’s 50 Women to Watch.tle is a graduate of The University of Chicago.
Myrtle is an on-air business contributor and co-host for CNBC on a number of programs including Squawk Box, Power Lunch and Closing Bell. She is also a sought-after speaker on life sciences, healthcare and business leadership topics.
Myrtle was named to FORTUNE Magazine’s list of Most Powerful Women in Business on three separate occasions. Her business and healthcare leadership has been hailed by America’s most influential business publications, including BusinessWeek, The Wall Street Journal, FORTUNE Magazine, TIME Magazine, Forbes, Black Enterprise Magazine and Harvard Business Review. Myrtle is also referenced in more than twenty business and leadership books. Myrtle is a graduate of The University of Chicago.
Myrtle is the proud mother of two young adults, a graduate of the University of Chicago and a co-author of the Amazon.com #1 best seller, Living Proof: Celebrating the Gifts that Came Wrapped in Sandpaper (2011). She lives in Northern California.
- A View From the C-Suite: 5 Keys to “Yes” to Data Science Innovation
- The Perfect Storm: Will America’s Most Successful Industry Fight off Demise
The pharmaceutical industry is facing the “Perfect, Category 5 Storm”: pipelines, patents, pricing and profits, are all converging in a manner that makes many gravely concerned. Here are a few facts: Currently 40% to 60% of industry pipelines are comprised of drugs that are externally sourced (in-licensing or acquisition, versus drug that are discovered in house. Approximately $218 billion of current worldwide branded drug sales are expected to come off patent between 2008 and 2015. The ever-growing U.S. healthcare costs means pricing pressures are expected to continue. It is not surprising then, that pharmaceutical company profits are also in decline, with the industry losing its position as the most profitable U.S. industry. All these factors together create the “Perfect, Category 5 Storm” that has the potential for widespread and lasting damage to the pharmaceutical industry. Yet, this perfect storm isn’t just about pipelines, patents, profitability, and pricing. It’s mostly about patients—and the inability of the pharmaceutical industry to meet their medical needs. A large proportion of the medications available don’t work for large segments of patients. Drug adverse reactions remain a leading cause of death in the U.S. despite efforts aimed at making drugs safe. This results in tremendous waste in terms of healthcare spending, human quality of life, and life itself. So where does this vital and important industry find shelter from the storm? In this stimulating talk, Myrtle shares her views on what the pharmaceutical industry must do NOW to regain its position as a strong, innovative, leading business sector. She will also speak candidly about why she believes we should all be concerned. Change will not be easy and certainly it is not for the faint of heart. But, change is essential if this sector is to regain its place at the forefront of value creation for patients and investors. - Breaking The “Glass Ceiling” and Shooting Beyond
Against all odds, a young black girl from the dusty, dessert town of Las Cruces, New Mexico, has grown to be one of the healthcare industries’ foremost leaders and America’s “Trusted Voice in Healthcare™. Myrtle Potter has dedicated three decades of service and leadership to saving and enhancing the lives of patients through her leadership of America’s most successful global life science companies. Myrtle Potter’s story is a true American story of hard work, determination, and passion for making a difference. With the mastery of a great leader and the storytelling gifts of a great coach, Myrtle shares her life story and the 10 secrets to her success. You will walk her life journey – she will take you from her candid discussions about her childhood, to her revelations about her experiences running multinational, multi-billion dollar healthcare businesses, right through to the offices and board rooms of her own successful companies where she is shooting beyond the “glass ceiling” as a trailblazing entrepreneur. This talk is will make you laugh and cry and you will be inspired by Myrtle’s belief that anyone can do what she has done. You will leave knowing that you too can break the glass ceiling and shoot beyond. - Healthcare Reform: The Good, The Bad, and The Unintended
Healthcare reform has captured all of our attention over the last twelve months, and yet, no topic in recent political history, has caused such divisiveness in our country. To understand why this topic has emerged to be such a lightening rod, one needs to understand the facts, the intended and unintended consequences of the decisions that have been made and the implications for the Country, your business and your family. Myrtle Potter, a 30-year healthcare industry veteran and one of America’s foremost healthcare leaders, has made healthcare her business. She shares her candid, straightforward assessment of U.S. healthcare reform as only a strong, seasoned insider can. Her talk will leave you motivated to make healthcare your business too. - MPower! – Control Your Healthcare NOW!
At 45, Myrtle Potter was at the top of her game. At the time, she was president of Genentech, Inc., the world’s most successful biotechnology company, and was directly responsible for bringing life-saving medications to patients. She simply seemed unstoppable. Yet, Myrtle lay in a hospital bed fighting for her life—failing lungs, failing liver and no kidney function. She was losing skin so badly that a vacuum was used to pick up her remains as it shed off her frail body. Myrtle was literally dying, ensnared in the same U.S. healthcare system for which she had made so many profound contributions. Myrtle ultimately wrested control of the direction of her care in order to save her own life. Myrtle came out of her frightening experience with one single focus: to dedicate her remaining working years to insuring that no-one goes through the same life-threatening healthcare maze that she endured. There are 85 million Americans just like Myrtle who bear the responsibility for directing and providing healthcare for themselves, their family or their loved ones. In Myrtle’s, MPower speech, Myrtle introduces the audience to her emotional, true story and shares the lessons she learned about being a confident, effective director of your and your families’ healthcare. Myrtle believes that it is essential for all of us to take control and be MPowered! to get the most out of our healthcare system where resources, time, and personal attention are increasingly difficult to come by.
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