Edmund T. Pratt, Jr. (1927 - Sept. 5, 2002) was the Chairman and CEO of Pfizer Inc. for 20 years. A graduate of the Wharton School of Business, Pratt served as a trustee of
Duke UniversityDuke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892...
from 1977 to 1988, and is the namesake of
Duke'sDuke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892...
Edmund T. Pratt School of Engineering. In 1987, Mr. Pratt received
The Hundred Year Association of New YorkThe Hundred Year Association of New York, founded in 1927, is a non-profit organization in New York City aimed at recognizing and rewarding dedication and service to the City of New York by businesses and organizations that have been in operation in the city for a century or more and by individuals...
's Gold Medal Award "in recognition of outstanding contributions to the City of New York." A magna cum laude graduate of Duke - who relied on a U.S.
Edmund T. Pratt, Jr. (1927 - Sept. 5, 2002) was the Chairman and CEO of Pfizer Inc. for 20 years. A graduate of the Wharton School of Business, Pratt served as a trustee of
Duke UniversityDuke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892...
from 1977 to 1988, and is the namesake of
Duke'sDuke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892...
Edmund T. Pratt School of Engineering. In 1987, Mr. Pratt received
The Hundred Year Association of New YorkThe Hundred Year Association of New York, founded in 1927, is a non-profit organization in New York City aimed at recognizing and rewarding dedication and service to the City of New York by businesses and organizations that have been in operation in the city for a century or more and by individuals...
's Gold Medal Award "in recognition of outstanding contributions to the City of New York." A magna cum laude graduate of Duke - who relied on a U.S. Navy scholarship to fund his education - Pratt donated $35 million to the university in 1999. Pratt died of cancer on September 5, 2002 at the age of 75.
Pratt, a graduate of Duke University and the
University of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania is a private research university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and is one of several institutions that claims to have been the first university in America...
's Wharton School of Business, joined Pfizer as controller in 1964, following public service as assistant secretary of the Army for Financial Management during the Kennedy Administration. In 1969, Pratt became chairman and president of Pfizer International; two years later, in 1971, he was elected president of Pfizer, and the following year succeeded Jack Powers as chairman and CEO.
During Pratt's two decades at the helm, Pfizer evolved into one of the fastest-growing pharmaceutical companies in the United States. The Pratt years were marked by expanded research and development facilities worldwide, the acquisition of Howmedica and other medical device companies, and the introduction of breakthrough products like Procardia XL (nifedipine GITS extended-release tablets), Feldene (piroxicam), Diflucan (fluconazole), and Norvasc (amlodipine besylate). Under his leadership, annual revenue increased sevenfold, from $1 billion to nearly $7 billion.
Pratt's earlier government service in Washington stood him in good stead as the Company grew and played a greater role in national and international matters. As advisor to United States Trade Representative Bill Brock in the mid-1980s, he played an instrumental role encouraging private sector involvement in trade matters. As chairman of the presidentially appointed Advisory Committee for Trade Negotiations, he also broadened the trade agenda to include items of global impact, including the issue of intellectual property.
Outgoing and convivial, Ed Pratt was an active participant in "Pfizer Family" celebrations and community activities. He served as chairman of the Business Council of New York State, The Business Round Table, and the President's Advisory Committee for Trade Negotiations. Virtually every area of New York City's commercial, cultural, and community life benefited from his heartfelt commitment to the city and its people. Shortly after Pratt stepped down as CEO in 1991, a new pharmaceuticals sales force was named in his honor. On March 1, 1992 Pratt retired as chairman and continued his involvement with the Company as a director of the board until 1997.
During his tenure as head of Pfizer, Ed Pratt was instrumental in the creation of low-income housing around Pfizer's Brooklyn plant, the donation of a Pfizer building for a public charter school, and the economic development and improvements in neighborhood safety. Always a generous man, Mr. Pratt held leadership positions in organizations such as the
United WayUnited Way of America, based in Alexandria, Virginia, is a non-profit organization that works with nearly 1,300 local United Way offices throughout the country in a coalition of charitable organizations to pool efforts in fundraising and support...
, the Boys Clubs of America, and the
Girl Scouts of the USAThe Girl Scouts of the United States of America is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad...
. He made significant contributions to
Long Island UniversityLong Island University is a private, coeducational, nonsectarian institution of higher education in the state of New York in the United States .-History:...
, in 1998, to fund academic, computer, and library facilities and, in 1999, to
Duke UniversityDuke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892...
which created the Pratt School of Engineering.
Mr. Pratt was inducted into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1999.
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