Merit Medical Systems Inc., a healthcare technology company in South Jordan, has announced the appointment of Joe Wright as president, effective immediately. As president, Wright will be responsible for the oversight of Merit’s global commercial, marketing and manufacturing operations, the company said in its announcement.
Wright has been part of the Merit team for 19 years. He most recently served as chief commercial officer, where he led the development and expansion of Merit’s global commercial activities. Prior to that, he served as president of Merit’s International Division, leading Merit’s business units across APAC and the Americas. In that role, he oversaw the development of Merit’s commercial strategy and led the expansion of the company’s international footprint, including the creation of Merit China in Beijing and the Merit Asia headquarters in Hong Kong.
“Investing in our people is a core part of the growth and profitability of our Continued Growth Initiatives Program,” said Fred P. Lampropoulos, Merit Medical’s chairman and CEO. “Joe has been central to executing our strategic plan and positioning the company for continued success, including spearheading our commercialization efforts and overseeing significant international expansion, engineering the advanced capabilities of our renal therapies group, including the integration of the business and assets we acquired from AngioDynamics in 2023, and directing the development of our commercial excellence initiatives globally. He is a valuable member of our leadership team, and I look forward to continuing to work closely with him to improve the lives of patients and drive sustained value creation for our shareholders.”
“I am honored to take on the role of president at this important point in Merit’s journey,” said Wright. “I have been a part of this team for almost two decades and have developed a deep appreciation of Merit’s innovative technology, global access, unique and successful culture, alignment of values within the healthcare system and opportunities for growth. I look forward to advancing our CGI objectives, improving the profitability of our business, and investing in our future.”
Merit’s board of directors is continuing the process of identifying potential internal and external CEO candidates in preparation for the previously announced retirement of Lampropoulos at the end of 2025. The process is being overseen by Merit’s independent directors with the assistance of Korn Ferry, a leading executive search firm. Merit said in a release that it does not intend to provide further updates on the process until such time as a successor is designated.
Prior to joining Merit, Wright held sales, marketing and business development positions with Motorola and Micron. He holds bachelor of arts and MBA degrees from Columbia University.