Jim Swanson

Jim Swanson is a global business and technology leader and Executive Vice President, Chief Information Officer, and member of the Executive Committee for Johnson & Johnson. Based at the company headquarters in New Jersey, Swanson is responsible for accelerating Johnson & Johnson’s business outcomes and advancing human health with technology.

Swanson joined Johnson & Johnson from Bayer Crop Science, a $20 billion division of Bayer, where he served as a member of the Executive Leadership Team and as CIO and Head of Digital Transformation. In this role, he inspired teams across the world to use digital innovation and data science to transform and deliver world-class products and services sustainably. Swanson and the Information Technology organizations he has led have received industry accolades for their contributions in leadership, application of technology to deliver substantial business value, best places to work in IT, and support of STEM for emerging talent.

Previously, Swanson served as CIO at Monsanto for five years before the company was acquired by Bayer. In addition, he had nine years of experience working as Vice President and CIO for Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development, where he advanced technology throughout the company’s R&D organization.

He also amassed a breadth of experience at Merck, where he led the R&D and Commercial IT organizations, and SmithKline Beecham, where he was a bench scientist before transitioning to IT. During his career, Swanson has had extensive international experience, including living in the UK and Germany.

Swanson holds a bachelor's degree in Bioscience and Biotechnology and a master's degree in Computer Science, both from Drexel University.

Swanson is married with three daughters. In his free time, he enjoys running, biking, skiing, scuba diving, and boating, as well as volunteering with United Way Ready by 21 and the American Heart Association.