Scott Flora '78 will receive the Alumni Merit-Loyalty Award for his achievements in the medical devices/biotechnology field of business and his loyalty and service to Millikin.
In November 2011, Flora joined OmniGuide Inc., a privately-held medical device company, as president and CEO. He also is a director of Tengion Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company that develops processes for organ and tissue regeneration.
From 2006 to 2011, Flora was global president of surgical devices for Covidien, where he was responsible for a team of 10,000 employees, a global sales force of 1,000, seven manufacturing sites and four research and development facilities. Prior to joining Covidien, he spent 19 years with Smith & Nephew, a global medical technology firm, advancing to the position of president/general manager of orthopedics reconstruction
Before the demands of his new position with OmniGuide led him to step down, Flora was an active member of Millikin’s board of trustees beginning in 2010, serving on the campaign steering, alumni and external development, and facilities committees.
Flora has been a loyal advocate of Millikin with his employers, helping build relationships between Covidien recruiters and the university, as well as securing grants for athletic trainers from Smith & Nephew.
In addition to giving of his time and talents to his alma mater, Flora has given generously to the “Transform MU” capital campaign, including naming the south goal post of the football field and the Howard and Virginia Flora Scholarship in honor of his parents. He also is a regular contributor to The Millikin Fund and has contributed to the Big Blue Club and previous capital campaigns.
A marketing major at MU, Flora was a founding member of Millikin’s chapter of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity and played on the Big Blue’s 1977 CCIW championship football team, earning All-CCIW honorable mention that year.
He has completed professional development programs at Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Yale University, Kellogg Graduate School of Business Management at Northwestern University and INSEAD, an international graduate business school in France. He also completed the Jack Welch development program, “Winning.”
Flora has served as the United Way chairman for his employers and for the Greater New Haven area. In 2009, Gateway Community College in New Haven named him to its Foundation Hall of Fame, and he was also inducted into the Business Hall of Fame by Junior Achievement of Connecticut. He also received the 2010 Technology Innovation Award from the New Haven Chamber of Commerce.
Flora lives in Guilford, Conn., with his wife of 31 years, Kathleen. They have two grown children: daughter Kelsey of Washington, D.C., and son Douglas of Boston.