George Svokos

​Pharmaceuticals

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Personal History

After graduating from Fort Hamilton HS as part of the historic bi-centennial Class of 1976, where he was editor-in-chief of the school newspaper, George Svokos worked his way through college as a waiter and bartender, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University [SEAS] in 1980. At Columbia, George was a member of the Chemical Engineering Honor Society as well as Tau Beta Pi.

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Though accepted to the Ph. D engineering program at the University of Pittsburg after college, George chose instead to become the 75th employee at Biocraft Laboratories, Inc., a small but ultimately influential emerging generic pharmaceutical company based in northern New Jersey. In 1984, Biocraft was instrumental in changing U.S. legislation allowing generic drugs to be substituted in prescriptions; this heralded an era of affordable medicines for all. At Biocraft George worked his way up from engineer, to project manager, to plant manager, and finally to vice president.

 

George’s proudest accomplishment at Biocraft, however, was building and running a state-of-the-art, multi-million-dollar pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, which employed over 200 American workers in the small town of Mexico, Missouri, where George and his family relocated. While in Missouri, George earned his Masters in Business Administration at the University of Missouri at Columbia, was named "Top 40 Under 40" in Mid-Missouri and appointed to serve on the Board of Directors of Commerce Bank Inc.

 

In 1996, following the purchase of Biocraft Laboratories by Teva Pharmaceuticals, Ltd, a growing international pharmaceutical company based in Israel, George became part of Teva's Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients division (API) as a VP responsible for operations both in Missouri and New Jersey. At the time of the purchase, Biocraft had grown to 700 employees and about $200 Million in annual sales, the newly combined company had 2,000 employees and $800 Million in sales. After another promotion to President of Teva's API's marketing company in 1999, George and his family moved back to New Jersey.

 

As of 2009, George serves as Teva API's Executive Vice President for Commercial Operations, responsible for global sales and marketing of 21 operating facilities, 5,000 employees in every region of the globe and over $1.5 Billion in sales. Teva Pharmaceuticals Inc., which in 2010 has 40,000 employees and over $1.5 Billion in sales, is now considered one of the leading pharmaceutical companies in the world.

 

According to George, however, his greatest success was marrying "the love of his life", Grazia Rechichi, also a fellow Fort Hamilton HS and Columbia University graduate. They have been happily married for 27 years and have three daughters: Erin (born in 1987), Elizabeth (born in 1989) and Alexandra (born in 1992), who currently attend Georgetown Law school, Bryn Mawr College and Columbia University, respectively. Grazia is currently on adjunct professor of English. George's greatest pleasure is exploring new places in the world with his family. Asked to what he owes his success, George inevitably responds: "my (Greek-American family's tough work ethic and my

 

Fort Hamilton teachers' belief in me."

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