Early life and career edit
Wyss was born in Bern, Switzerland in 1936. His father sold mechanical calculators and his mother was a homemaker. He was raised in an apartment with two sisters.[1] After receiving a Master of Science degree in Civil and Structural Engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich in 1959,[2] Wyss earned an MBA from the Harvard University Graduate School of Business in 1965. Following that, he worked in various positions in the textile industry, including plant engineer and project manager for Chrysler in Pakistan, Turkey, and the Philippines.[2][3]
Wyss also worked in the steel industry in Brussels, Belgium.[2] During his time working in that industry, Wyss ran a side business selling airplanes. Through one sale, he met a surgeon who had co-founded Swiss medical device manufacturer Synthes[4] After that meeting, Wyss spent two years learning about the medical device industry. He founded and became president of Synthes USA in 1977.[3]
- ^ Marie-Christine Bonzom (October 27, 2011). "Bernese billionaire works to keep West wild". Swissinfo. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
- ^ a b c Allison Connolly (April 20, 2011). "Wyss May Top Bertarelli as Richest Swiss Man in Synthes Sale". Bloomberg. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
- ^ a b "Hansjörg Wyss, MBA 1965". alumni.hbs.edu. Harvard Business School. January 1, 2007. Retrieved 25 June 2015.
- ^ Miriam Hill (December 6, 2009). "Legal troubles for local billionaire". Philly.com. Retrieved 9 July 2015.