New OrthoWorx CEO Brings Global Perspective to Local Challenges and Opportunities

September 2011: OrthoWorx e-Newsletter

The head of a modern orthopedic company spends his or her day (and night) dealing with employees, customers and collaborators all around the globe. The employees who report to that executive manage R&D centers, sales offices, distribution facilities and manufacturing plants on nearly every continent. Travel to those outbound locations is a major part of the job.

David Floyd has lived that life. As the Worldwide President of DePuy Orthopaedics (and in other jobs before that one), he has led global enterprises with annual revenues in the billions and employee workforce totals in the thousands.

On September 6, David began a different phase in his career as Chief Executive Officer of OrthoWorx. The day he joined, the OrthoWorx employee count increased by 50 percent—from two full-time employees to three. And his focus is now centered specifically on Warsaw and Kosciusko County—and on working to assure that the region retains its claim to the title of the Orthopedics Capital of the World.

After 24 years in industry, David says that OrthoWorx is a different and welcome kind of opportunity. “OrthoWorx represents a chance to make a bit of shift in my career while still leveraging my strengths and experiences in orthopedics and organization leadership,” he said. “I’m excited to be moving into an undertaking that has a strong service component to it. Our success at OrthoWorx has the potential to help assure long-term vitality for the economy of the entire Warsaw region and to help bolster the overall Indiana economy.”

Beyond his orthopedic industry connections to Warsaw—in addition to his DePuy experience, he started his career in orthopedics in 1987 at Zimmer—David has longstanding and deep connections to the community.

He is a graduate of Grace College in Winona Lake, Ind. and now serves on the President’s Advisory Council and the Strategic Planning Committee for the college. He was a founding Board member of OrthoWorx and is a Director of the Orthopedics Capital Foundation. David met his wife, a Winona Lake native, during their college years at Grace. The Floyds’ two children were born in Warsaw.

“The orthopedic industry and the Warsaw community have been two major influences in my life and my family’s lives, and OrthoWorx sits at the intersection of those influences,” he said. “I find it exciting to work to preserve and enhance the attributes that have made the Warsaw area unique in the world and the envy of communities everywhere. We will need to be strategic and intentional to keep Warsaw in that position. I believe my experiences can help drive synergies between community and industry. Each needs the other. The Warsaw region needs the orthopedic industry to be strong to provide economic health for the entire community. The orthopedic industry can operate more successfully from Warsaw if OrthoWorx can mobilize the community around its initiatives.“

With nearly 7,000 direct orthopedic industry employees in the Warsaw area, the region has a great deal at stake. David Floyd says he and OrthoWorx are committed to collaborating with community leaders to build on the region’s tremendous existing strengths. “Our organization’s direction was well established by the 2009 BioCrossroads report, so I don’t foresee any changes in that sense,” he said. “My focus will be to continue to build out our staff and further enhance the collaborations we need to move aggressively on the areas that are crucial for the Warsaw region to maintain its global preeminence in orthopedics and the economic benefits that brings to the entire community.”