Team News
Crowell & Moring International LLC (CMI) has named Geralyn Ritter, a seasoned and highly regarded global health care and public policy leader, as president and CEO.
Ritter brings more than 25 years of diverse business, legal and government experience to her new role, with particular depth in pharmaceuticals, health care, international trade, environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG), and global public policy.
Ritter takes the mantle from former Ambassador Robert Holleyman, who has led CMI for the past seven years. Holleyman has worked closely with the CMI Board and leadership team over the past few months to plan for his previously announced retirement at the end of March.
“Geralyn not only brings extraordinary credentials that will benefit our clients as they seek to drive change across a broad array of issues, but she was a client of CMI and understands the value of the multi-lateral work and impact that this widely respected global policy and advocacy firm has had since its founding three decades ago and continues to have today,” said Philip T. Inglima, chair of Crowell & Moring LLP. “She is a trusted leader with strong business acumen, a proven ability to navigate complex issues and bring together diverse stakeholders, and a demonstrated track record shaping policies and delivering solutions.”
Ritter was most recently Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs, Sustainability & ESG at Organon & Co. – a global health care company that spun out of Merck & Co., Inc., three years ago. She was Organon’s lead global spokesperson and directed its government affairs, communications, and corporate responsibility efforts, bringing strong market and media recognition to Organon and its mission of delivering health care products that make healthier lives for women around the world.
Prior to that, Ritter held a number of senior positions at Merck, between 2008 and 2021, including Senior Vice President, Corporate Secretary and Assistant General Counsel, and Senior Vice President of Global Public Policy & Corporate Responsibility. During her tenure, she led the creation of Merck for Mothers, a trailblazing global initiative to reduce maternal mortality, which was cited as one of the most impactful developments in global health. Ritter has also served as Vice President for International Affairs at the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA); served in the Executive Office of the President, U.S. Trade Representative, where she had responsibility for intellectual property matters; and counseled clients on trade and IP matters at Covington & Burling.
“This is an exciting opportunity to lead a firm with an established global brand known for solving issues at the intersection of public policy, law, politics, and business,” Ritter said. “CMI’s work in areas such as healthcare, international trade and investment matters, and the digital economy has influenced change that extends from the highest levels of government to patients and customers.”
The CMI team and its clients benefit from Crowell’s global platform with offices in the U.S., Europe, MENA, and Asia and a deep bench of regulatory, government affairs, litigation, transactional, and intellectual property lawyers and professionals who deliver innovative business solutions and strategies. CMI also works closely with Crowell Health Solutions, a strategic consulting firm that helps clients deliver innovative alternatives to the traditional approaches of providing and paying for health care, including through digital health, health equity, and value-based health care.
Geralyn is a noted public speaker, patient advocate, and author. She recently published Bone by Bone: A Memoir of Trauma and Healing, her account of suffering near-fatal injuries in the derailment of an Amtrak train outside Philadelphia in 2015 and her long recovery in the years since. She co-chairs the Patient and Family Advisory Council at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center; is a board member of the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University; and recently concluded two terms serving on the board of directors of Business for Social Responsibility, a global non-profit consulting firm.
Ritter earned her bachelor’s degree from Duke University, her master’s degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and her law degree from Stanford Law School.
