Cindy Eckert
Entrepreneur and Investor
Cindy Eckert (formerly Whitehead) is an American entrepreneur who built and sold two pharmaceutical companies, notably Sprout Pharmaceuticals, creator of “female Viagra,” for more than $1B. She subsequently founded The Pink Ceiling which invests in companies founded by, or delivering products for, women. The Pink Ceiling's incubator - dubbed The Pinkubator - is based in Raleigh, NC. Eckert was featured on the cover of Entrepreneur Magazine's Women to Watch issue in January 2016. In November 2017, Eckert re-acquired Sprout Pharmaceuticals, and the rights to its drug Addyi, from Valeant.
Book Recommendations
A Curious Mind
by Brian Grazer, Charles Fishman
And A Curious Mind is about this one thing that has the ability to connect us all. And that is curiosity. And I cannot agree more enthusiastically with that concept, because if I think about all of the successful people I’ve had the privilege to meet over the years, I do feel like that’s it. They are wired with curiosity to the core. And in his book, Brian, in a curious mind, he talks about, really, techniques in which you can cultivate your own curiosity. So he gives very practical tips. But one of his is that he schedules a curiosity conversation with somebody he doesn’t know, who’s outside of his own discipline, and he really sits down. As a discipline, on his calendar, he puts aside time really for a curiosity endeavor, because he knows that when he sits down and learns from others, he can apply that to what he’s doing.
— Cindy Eckert, source
The Five Temptations of a CEO
by Patrick Lencioni, Jossey-Bass
Pat Lencioni’s books – I love that. “Five Temptations of a CEO.” Yeah. I think it was about what do you prioritize, what do you let go – I thought that was actually a great book. Maybe they’re simple reads that I need on the airplane.
— Cindy Eckert, source
Purple Cow
by Seth Godin
Yeah, I have [given it] to everybody who’s worked for me.
— Cindy Eckert, source