J&J Ethical Code for R&D

Caring for the world, one person at a time... inspires and unites the people of Johnson & Johnson. We embrace research and science - bringing innovative ideas, products and services to advance the health and well-being of people. Employees of the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies work with partners in health care to touch the lives of over a billion people every day, throughout the world.

Our Family of Companies comprises:

• The world’s premier consumer health company
• The world’s largest and most diverse medical devices and diagnostics company
• The world’s third-largest biologics company
• And the world’s sixth-largest pharmaceuticals company

We have more than 250 operating companies in 57 countries employing 120,200 people. Our worldwide headquarters is in New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA. To learn more about our companies, explore the map.

Our Credo Values

The values that guide our decision making are spelled out in Our Credo. Put simply, Our Credo challenges us to put the needs and well-being of the people we serve first.

Robert Wood Johnson, former chairman from 1932 to 1963 and a member of the Company’s founding family, crafted Our Credo himself in 1943, just before Johnson & Johnson became a publicly traded company. This was long before anyone ever heard the term “corporate social responsibility.” Our Credo is more than just a moral compass. We believe it’s a recipe for business success. The fact that Johnson & Johnson is one of only a handful of companies that have flourished through more than a century of change is proof of that.

View the video to learn more about Our Credo and how it lives in the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies today. Explore its history on our blog, Kilmer House, named for Dr. Frederick Barnett Kilmer, the first scientific director of Johnson & Johnson.

Our Management Approach

Johnson & Johnson is a company of enduring strength. We’ve been privileged to play a role in helping millions of people the world over be well and stay well through more than a century of change. As the science of human health and well-being has grown, we’ve been able to grow along with it. Even more important, we’ve helped shape and define what health and well-being means in every day lives. Our products, services, ideas and giving now touch the lives of at least one billion people everyday.

We credit our strength and endurance to a consistent approach to managing our business, and to the character of our people. We are guided in everything we do by Our Credo, a management document authored more than 60 years ago by Robert Wood Johnson, former chairman from 1932 to 1963, and by four strategic principles.

Our Views & Positions

The business of health care is the business of caring for people. At least a billion people around the world are touched each day by what we do. It’s an extraordinary responsibility that calls for a strong moral compass. For Johnson & Johnson that compass is Our Credo. It challenges us to put the needs and well-being of the people we serve first.

As the world’s most diversified health care company, we understand that human health and the health of our planet are interconnected. We also believe that employees who are valued, respected and treated fairly bring dedication to their work and make important contributions. And, we know that companies operating with good corporate governance and ethical business practices make sound decisions that benefit everyone.

As a global corporate citizen, what we believe and what we do have important consequences for some of the most considerable challenges and opportunities facing health care and business today.

Corporate Governance

The values embodied in Our Credo guide the actions of the people of the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies at all levels and in all parts of the world. They have done so for more than 60 years. These Credo values extend to our accounting and financial reporting responsibilities. Our management is responsible for timely, accurate, reliable and objective financial statements and related information. As such:

* We maintain a well-designed system of internal accounting controls.
* We encourage strong and effective corporate governance from our Board of Directors.
* We continuously review our business results and strategic choices.
* We focus on financial stewardship.

Accounting Controls

Our professionally trained internal auditors travel worldwide to monitor our system of internal accounting controls. This system is designed to provide reasonable assurance that assets are safeguarded and that transactions and events are recorded properly. Our internal controls include self-assessments and internal and external audit reviews of our operating companies, which concludes with our "Management's Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting," printed in our Annual Report.

Independent Auditor

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, performs an integrated audit of our consolidated financial statements and internal control over financial reporting. Their opinions, as stated in the "Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm" are based on their audits and are printed in our Annual Report.

Audit Committee of our Board of Directors

The Audit Committee is composed solely of independent directors with the financial knowledge and experience to provide appropriate oversight. They meet regularly to review internal control matters as well as key accounting and financial reporting issues. The Audit Committee also meets regularly in private sessions with the independent auditors, the Chief Financial Officer, the General Counsel and the Vice President, Internal Audit to discuss the results of their work, including:

* Observations on the adequacy of internal financial controls,
* Quality of financial reporting,
* Confirmation that they are properly discharging their responsibilities.

Business Results

Our Executive Committee reviews financial results and develops strategies and initiatives for long-term growth. The Committee's intent is to ensure objectivity in our business assessments, constructively challenge the approach to business opportunities and issues, and monitor our business results and related controls.

Company Structure

Johnson & Johnson has more than 250 companies located in 57 countries around the world. Our Family of Companies is organized into several business segments comprised of franchises and therapeutic categories.


Our History

Johnson & Johnson was founded more than 120 years ago on a revolutionary idea: Doctors and nurses should use sterile sutures, dressings and bandages to treat peoples’ wounds. Since then, we’ve brought the world new ideas and products that have transformed human health and well-being. Every invention, every product, every breakthrough has been powered by generations of employees who are inspired to make a difference.

Explore our rich history as well as the recent advances from our companies: