George Barrett Leaders
George Barrett is a nationally recognized healthcare industry leader, with a distinguished career as an executive in global corporations. As the founder of The Overtone Group, he advises companies and nonprofit organizations, mentors senior executives, teaches our next generation of leaders, advises on public policy, and is a frequent speaker on leadership and healthcare.
Barrett is a director on multiple boards, including Target Corporation, National Resilience, Digital Diagnostics, and Nationwide Children’s Hospital. He is vice chair of The Conference Board and co-chairs the National Academy of Medicine Action Collaborative on Decarbonizing the U.S. Health Sector. A lifelong performing musician and songwriter, he is a trustee of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
He is a visiting professor of practice and senior fellow at New York University’s Stern School of Business, an adjunct professor at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, serves on the board of Brown University’s Corporation Committee on Medical and Health Affairs, and as a Governor on Brown’s Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs.
Barrett served as chairman and CEO of Cardinal Health, a Fortune 20 multi-national healthcare services and products company, for nearly a decade, ending in November 2018. Under his tenure, Cardinal Health was recognized as one of Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies, Forbes America’s Best Employers, and received numerous awards for its public health, corporate social responsibility, and philanthropic initiatives. Barrett was personally recognized multiple times by Institutional Investor as a Top CEO on the All-America Executive Team and as a Top CEO in the annual Glassdoor Employees’ Choice Awards.
Prior to Cardinal Health, Barrett held senior positions, including president, at multiple global pharmaceutical companies. He previously served on the boards of the Fourth District of the Federal Reserve Bank and Eaton Corporation, and as a member of President Obama's White House Business Council.
Barrett is a graduate of Brown University with a dual concentration in history and music and earned an M.B.A. from New York University. He is a trustee emeritus of Brown and is the recipient of multiple honorary doctorates. Barrett is the recipient of the Ellis Island Medal of Honor and Peter G. Peterson Business Statesmanship Award, among others, for a life dedicated to community service and the public good.
