Invacare Corp. has named Matthew E. Monaghan its new president/CEO, the company announced in a news release last week.
Monaghan takes over starting April 1 and succeeds Interim President/CEO Robert K. Gudbranson, who replaced President/CEO Gerald Blouch upon Blouch’s retirement last year. Once Monaghan is on board, Gudbranson will continue as Invacare’s senior VP and CFO.
Monaghan joins Invacare following what the manufacturer called an “extensive global search conducted by an executive search firm under the direction of the Invacare board of directors.”
The Invacare announcement said Monaghan most recently comes from Zimmer, a Warsaw, Ind., company serving the musculoskeletal healthcare segment. Zimmer specializes in joint replacement technology, and Monaghan is senior VP and general manager of Zimmer’s global hips business segment.
As such, Monaghan was responsible for more than $1.3 billion in revenue and the division’s product development, engineering, clinical studies, quality, regulatory affairs and marketing functions, Invacare said.
C. Martin Harris, M.D., MBA, interim chairman of Invacare’s board of directors, said of the appointment, “I am pleased to welcome Matt as Invacare’s next president and CEO. Our board conducted a thorough and comprehensive search over the past six months and unanimously concluded that Matt is best suited to lead Invacare through this critical time and into its next phase of growth and development.”
Invacare Corp. has been under a U.S. Food & Drug Administration consent decree since December 2012, and wheelchair production at two of the company’s facilities in its Elyria, Ohio, hometown has been sharply curtailed during that time.
Harris pointed out, “In addition to his medical device background, [Monaghan] has proven turnaround experience, which will be critical to Invacare as it works through its short-term challenges. We are fortunate to have someone with Matt’s broad cross-functional experience, and the board looks forward to the results of partnering with the senior management team under Matt’s experience and leadership.”
In the news announcement, Monaghan said, “I am honored to have been selected to lead Invacare at a time of unprecedented opportunity for the company. Invacare is well positioned to take advantage of the growing global home healthcare market. I look forward to working closely with Invacare’s board of directors, executive team and talented and hard-working associates to continue to turn around this business, innovate, and resume the company’s historical market leadership position.”