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Amgen Inc.

Biotechnology / BiopharmaceuticalsFounded 1980
Reviewed by Swet Parvadiya
Company data updated: September 2026

Leadership History

Amgen: CEO History

4 leaders · 1980 to present

Who is the CEO of Amgen?

Robert A. Bradway is the CEO of Amgen, in the role since 2012. The first chief executive was George B. Rathmann, from 1980.

Current CEO
Robert A. Bradway (since 2012)
First CEO
George B. Rathmann (1980)
Leaders documented
4
Founded
1980
NameRoleFromToYears in role
Robert A. BradwayChairman and Chief Executive Officer2012Present14
Kevin W. SharerChief Executive Officer2000201212
Gordon M. BinderChief Executive Officer1988200012
George B. RathmannChief Executive Officer198019888
Who was CEO of Amgen before Robert A. Bradway?
Kevin W. Sharer was CEO of Amgen from 2000 to 2012, before Robert A. Bradway took over in 2012.

Company Overview

Amgen is one of the companies that created the biotechnology industry. Instead of synthesizing small-molecule drugs, it engineers living cells to make complex proteins, an approach it first commercialized with Epogen in 1989. Based in Thousand Oaks, California, it is best known for medicines in bone health, inflammation, cardiovascular disease and kidney disease, and since the 2023 Horizon acquisition in rare disease. Fiscal 2025 revenue was US$36.8 billion across a portfolio in which 14 products each sold more than US$1 billion, although several of the older brands are now losing both price and volume.

Robert A. Bradway

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

2012 – Present

14 years (current)

Key Decisions & Impact

Bradway spent 19 years at Morgan Stanley before joining Amgen in 2006 as a vice president in operations; he became chief financial officer in 2007 and president and chief operating officer in 2010. His defining recent decision is the obesity bet on MariTide, pursued years behind Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly on the argument that monthly or quarterly dosing can still win share, funded by lifting research spending to US$7.3 billion in fiscal 2025.

Legacy

Robert Bradway became chief executive on May 23, 2012, succeeding Kevin Sharer as the fourth CEO in Amgen's history, and added the chairmanship at the start of 2013. He rebuilt the portfolio through acquisition, buying Onyx Pharmaceuticals for US$10.4 billion in 2013, Otezla for US$13.4 billion in 2019, Five Prime Therapeutics for US$1.9 billion in 2021, ChemoCentryx for US$3.7 billion in 2022 and Horizon Therapeutics for US$27.8 billion in 2023, about US$57 billion of deals in total. He also built the biosimilars business, which reached about US$3.0 billion of sales in fiscal 2025, and raised the dividend every year while managing the decline of the legacy Epogen, Aranesp, Neulasta and Enbrel franchises. Revenue rose from US$17.3 billion in 2012 to US$36.8 billion in fiscal 2025.

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Kevin W. Sharer

Chief Executive Officer

2000 – 2012

12 years

Key Decisions & Impact

Sharer chose to buy Immunex outright in 2002 rather than continue sharing Enbrel economics, and he responded to the ESA safety restrictions with a cost reduction program and a shift of research toward bone health and inflammation, which produced Prolia and XGEVA in 2010.

Legacy

Kevin Sharer joined Amgen in 1992 as president and chief operating officer and became chairman and chief executive in 2000. Over his tenure revenue grew from US$3.6 billion with a presence in 17 countries to close to US$16 billion with operations in 55 countries. His largest transaction was the US$16 billion acquisition of Immunex in 2002, which brought Enbrel in-house. He also carried the company through the 2007 FDA black box warnings on erythropoiesis-stimulating agents and the restructuring that followed. He stepped down as CEO on May 23, 2012 and left the board at the end of that year.

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Gordon M. Binder

Chief Executive Officer

1988 – 2000

12 years

Key Decisions & Impact

Binder kept the company independent rather than selling to a large pharmaceutical partner, invested ahead of approval in the manufacturing capacity Epogen and Neupogen needed, and litigated the erythropoietin patents to judgment instead of settling.

Legacy

Gordon Binder joined Amgen as chief financial officer in 1982 and led its June 1983 initial public offering. He was promoted to chief executive in October 1988, when founding CEO George Rathmann retired, and ran the company through the launches of Epogen in 1989 and Neupogen in 1991, the patent fight with Genetics Institute, and the growth of the two products into the first billion-dollar biotechnology franchises. He handed the role to Kevin Sharer in May 2000.

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George B. Rathmann

Chief Executive Officer

1980 – 1988

8 years

Key Decisions & Impact

Rathmann narrowed a scattered early program list down to human therapeutics, backed Fu-Kuen Lin's team on erythropoietin when rivals considered the cloning problem impractical, and licensed EPO rights to Kirin through the 1984 Kirin-Amgen joint venture to fund development.

Legacy

George Rathmann, a physical chemist who had run research and development at Abbott Laboratories, was named Amgen's first chief executive in 1980 and worked from a small trailer so that laboratory space could go to scientists. He set the scientific agenda, recruited the research staff and raised the funding that carried the company through its pre-revenue years, including about US$19 million by early 1981 and nearly US$40 million in the 1983 initial public offering. He retired in 1988, before Epogen reached the market.

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Challenges & Strategic Context

Amgen's central challenge is replacing revenue on medicines that are losing price and exclusivity. Enbrel sales fell 33% in fiscal 2025 to US$2.23 billion, driven by a 36% lower net selling price after the U.S. Medicare Part D redesign, a larger 340B Program mix and higher commercial discounts, and Enbrel's negotiated Medicare price under the Inflation Reduction Act took effect on January 1, 2026. The later selection of Otezla for Medicare price setting led Amgen to record US$1.2 billion of intangible asset impairment charges in 2025. Denosumab biosimilars launched globally during 2025, and the company has guided to accelerated erosion of Prolia and XGEVA in 2026; the two brands generated US$6.50 billion of combined sales in fiscal 2025. Financing the Horizon acquisition left US$54.6 billion of debt outstanding at December 31, 2025 and US$2.8 billion of net interest expense in fiscal 2025. Closing the gap depends on newer launches and on late-stage programs such as MariTide, whose first Phase 3 chronic weight management readout is not scheduled until 2027.

Amgen CEO and Leadership FAQ

Who is Robert A. Bradway and what has defined his leadership as Amgen CEO?

Robert Bradway became chief executive on May 23, 2012, after joining Amgen in 2006 as a vice president in operations and serving as chief financial officer from 2007 and president and chief operating officer from 2010. He has rebuilt the portfolio by acquisition, buying deCODE, Onyx, Otezla, Five Prime, ChemoCentryx and Horizon, and built the biosimilars business from nothing to about US$3.0 billion of fiscal 2025 sales.

Who was Kevin W. Sharer and what was his tenure as CEO of Amgen?

Kevin Sharer served as CEO from 2000 to 2012, growing Amgen's annual revenues from $3.6 billion to over $15 billion, orchestrating the $16 billion acquisition of Immunex to acquire Enbrel, and expanding global manufacturing.

Who was Gordon M. Binder and what was his impact as Amgen CEO from 1988 to 2000?

Gordon Binder led Amgen during its golden era of biotechnology commercialization, taking Epogen and Neupogen from clinical trials to multi-billion-dollar FDA approvals, establishing Amgen as the world's most profitable biotech enterprise.

Who was George B. Rathmann and why is he considered the founding father of Amgen?

George Rathmann was Amgen's first chief executive, from 1980 to 1988. A physical chemist who had led research and development at Abbott Laboratories, he recruited the early scientific staff, set the research agenda and raised the funding that carried the company to the Epogen launch, retiring shortly before that approval.

Who is Dr. James Bradner and what is his role as Chief Scientific Officer at Amgen?

Dr. Jay Bradner, former President of Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research and Harvard Medical School professor, was appointed Executive Vice President of R&D and Chief Scientific Officer in 2024 to lead Amgen's drug discovery pipeline.

Who is Amgen's chief financial officer?

Thomas Dittrich became chief financial officer on September 1, 2026, succeeding Peter Griffith, who had held the role since 2020 and retired. Amgen announced the transition in May 2026; Dittrich rejoined the company as executive vice president on July 1, 2026.

What governance role does the Amgen Board of Directors maintain?

Amgen's Board consists of independent leaders from medicine, academic biochemistry, and global finance who oversee clinical trial pipeline safety, regulatory compliance, executive compensation, and enterprise risk management.

How does Amgen align executive compensation with long-term clinical and financial performance?

Executive compensation is tied strictly to non-GAAP revenue, non-GAAP net income, free cash flow generation, relative Total Shareholder Return (TSR), and critical pipeline clinical milestones.

Who is the CEO of Amgen?

Robert A. Bradway serves as the CEO, guiding the company through massive patent cliffs and spearheading aggressive international expansion.

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Content is for informational purposes only. Not financial advice. Data sourced from SEC filings, annual reports, and public records. See our full disclaimer and methodology.