Frans Van Houten

Biography

Frans van Houten is CEO of Royal Philips, a position he has held since April 2011. He is also Chairman of the Board of Management and the Executive Committee. Frans is passionate about innovation, entrepreneurship and business transformation. He is leading Philips on a course to leadership in health technology, dedicated to making the world healthier and more sustainable, with the aim of improving three billion lives per year by 2025. Frans first joined Philips in 1986 and has held multiple global leadership positions across the company on three continents, including the role of co-CEO of the Consumer Electronics division. From 2004 to 2009 he led the successful Philips spin-off NXP Semiconductors. Between 2009 and 2010 he ran his own consultancy practice and was, among other roles, senior advisor to the board of Dutch financial services business ING Group, where he was responsible for the separation of the company’s banking and insurance activities. Frans launched Philips’ global Accelerate! program in 2011 with the objective of improving customer focus, transforming the portfolio, driving innovation and operational excellence and improving competitiveness throughout the company in order to boost growth. Accelerate! remains the engine of the company’s improved results today.

Research Interest

Pharmacy