Michael Mussallem on innovation
From A Career Built on Innovation: Mike Mussallem’s Lasting Impact on Global Healthcare | Rose-Hulman · · Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
“I became a student of innovation and really proposed that we need to change course so Edward's life Sciences is very much focused on patients with cardiovascular disease and in particular what we call structural heart disease.”
On , Michael Mussallem, Former Chairman & Chief Executive Officer at Edwards Lifesciences, spoke about innovation during A Career Built on Innovation: Mike Mussallem’s Lasting Impact on Global Healthcare | Rose-Hulman on Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.
About Michael Mussallem
In a May 2025 interview with Rose-Hulman, former Edwards Lifesciences chairman and CEO Mike Mussallem discussed his career and the company’s focus on structural heart disease. Mussallem said that in the 1990s, the cardiovascular business was not excelling while competitors were, and that his analysis led him to conclude that innovation was the difference. He proposed changing course, and Edwards Lifesciences became a freestanding publicly traded company on April 3, 2000. Mussallem stated that over 95% of what Edwards sells today holds the number one global position. Mussallem credited his education at Rose-Hulman, where he earned a chemical engineering degree in 1974, with teaching him how to learn and the importance of collaboration. He noted that the faculty took a personal interest in him and guided him to “learn to learn.” Mussallem also said that technology is racing at incredible speeds and that young people have an opportunity to change the world in dramatic ways. He is the co-founder of the Linda and Mike Mussallem foundation.