Richard Davis Becomes Chair of the Mayo Clinic Board
Richard Davis, former CEO of Minneapolis-based U.S. Bancorp, will serve a four-year term as chair of the Mayo Clinic board of trustees.
Davis, who joined the Mayo board in 2017, was elected chair of the board for a term that began Friday.
He was U.S. Bancorp’s CEO from 2006 to 2017 and served as the executive chair from 2007 to 2018.
“Richard is a values-driven leader who brings a deep understanding of Mayo Clinic, an unwavering commitment to our values, strategic vision and business acumen to Mayo Clinic’s board,” Dr. Gianrico Farrugia, president and CEO of Mayo Clinic, said in an article published by Mayo Clinic News Network. “He will continue to help lead Mayo Clinic on our patient-centered journey to transform health care for the benefit of all.”
Davis succeeds Michael Powell as chair of the Mayo Clinic board of trustees. Powell served for several years on the Federal Communications Commission. He was originally appointed to the commission by President Bill Clinton, and he was elevated to the role of chairman by President George W. Bush.
During his tenure on the Mayo board, Davis chaired the finance and investment committee. “As a member of the board, Davis also helped guide Mayo Clinic’s Bold. Forward. strategy to transform health care, including the successful launch of both Mayo Clinic Platform and Bold. Forward. Unbound., a multiyear investment in Mayo Clinic’s physical and digital infrastructure across all of its sites,” according to the Mayo Clinic News Network article.
Davis currently serves on the boards of Mastercard Inc., Wells Fargo & Co., and Dow Inc.
From 2019 to 2022, Davis was president and CEO of Make-A-Wish America, which is based in Phoenix.
In recent decades, Davis was one of the best-known CEOs in the Twin Cities, and he had an extensive record of board service and civic engagement.
The Itasca Project, an employer-led civic alliance, recently celebrated its 20th anniversary. Leaders of the Itasca Project invited Davis to speak at an Oct. 23 event in St. Paul called “Catalyzing Civic Leadership,” which was attended by more than 300 people.
Among his many involvements, Davis served as an executive co-chair of the 2018 Minnesota Super Bowl Host Committee. Former Ecolab CEO Doug Baker also was a Super Bowl co-chair. Now Baker serves alongside Davis on the Mayo Clinic board, which he joined in 2020.
Mayo’s board of trustees consists of Mayo physicians and administrators as well as public representatives. In addition to Davis and Baker, other business leaders sit on the Mayo board. Also serving as Mayo trustees are former Xerox CEO Ursula Burns and Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Alphabet Inc., which includes Google Inc. within the holding company.
