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Philip Musica, using the alias F. Donald Coster purchased McKesson & Robbins in 1926 for $1 million and made it the world's third-largest pharmaceutical company through a blend of legitimate growth and systematic fraud.
While building real operations that generated $174 million in annual sales by 1937, he installed his brothers under false identities, creating fictitious sales records and stealing company funds, including $640,000 to cover his stock market losses.
The scheme unraveled in 1937 when Treasurer Julian Thompson uncovered $20 million in fictional assets, leading to an SEC investigation in December 1938.
Upon discovery of his true identity through fingerprints, Musica died by suicide rather than face arrest.
William Morison led Foremost-McKesson from 1974 to 1978.
He thwarted a hostile takeover by Sharon Steel in 1976 by exposing their 45% earnings overstatement.
He also restructured the corporation into four operating divisions:
Morison got rid of eleven underperforming units and acquired businesses like C.F. Mueller Company.
Thomas P. Drohan served as president of Foremost-McKesson from 1978 until his death in 1984.
He implemented computerized inventory systems and automated warehousing that slashed personnel costs by one-third.
Annual profit growth jumped from 2% before 1976 to 20% under his tenure.
McKesson became an integral partner to both suppliers and customers while maintaining high stock prices to deter corporate raiders.
He died from cancer at age 56.
Neil Harlan was a lifer at McKesson, serving in multiple executive roles from 1974 to 1993, starting as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer before ascending to Chairman in 1979 and CEO in 1984.
He launched concrete initiatives like the 1985 Employee Stock Ownership Plan that distributed 500,000 shares directly to workers' accounts.
Harlan was both Chairman and Chief Executive until his departure.
John Hammergren transformed McKesson during his 18-year tenure as CEO from 2001 to 2019, leading the healthcare giant from 38th to 5th place on the Fortune 500.
He quadrupled revenues from $38 billion to $208 billion.
Taking charge in the wake of an accounting scandal, he implemented rigorous performance metrics and established the ICARE principles as cornerstones of corporate culture.
His leadership faced intense scrutiny over executive compensation and McKesson's role in the opioid crisis, yet his customer-centered approach and focus on accountability earned him recognition from Harvard Business Review as a top-performing CEO.
He delivered 400% of total shareholder returns during his stewardship.
Brian Tyler became CEO of McKesson in April 2019.
Under his leadership, McKesson has expanded its digital capabilities, strengthened pharmaceutical supply chains, and deepened partnerships across healthcare sectors.
Tyler's focus on operational excellence drove revenue to $27.3 billion while improving healthcare delivery systems.
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