Message from Our Chairman and CEO

At Medtronic, the nature of our products makes corporate citizenship a core component of our business. We are proud of the positive impact we have on people worldwide, as our therapies currently touch the lives of more than 7 million patients each year.

However, the growing global burden of chronic, noncommunicable disease presents a clear opportunity for us to contribute to human welfare on a larger scale than ever before. Millions of people in both developed and emerging markets have unmet needs, and fulfilling our Mission to alleviate pain, restore health and extend life requires us to think and act globally, to ensure patients have access to our life-enhancing therapies regardless of where they live or their economic status. We aspire to reach 25 million patients worldwide every year by 2020.

Emerging markets will inject one billion new patients into the global healthcare system over the next decade, and treating chronic diseases will account for nearly 75 percent of global healthcare expenses. Our ability to create cost-effective therapies and successful healthcare delivery models is critical to helping patients receive treatments that restore them to active, fulfilling lives while minimizing the adverse economic impact of care and avoiding the productivity losses that occur when they lack treatment.

To effectively meet this challenge, Medtronic will partner with local governments to provide chronic disease management solutions and help formulate policies that improve access to medical technology. We will help shape, build and contribute to healthcare systems that serve a broader set of patients, especially those further down the economic pyramid. And we will develop products, such as leadless pacemakers and disposable insulin pumps, which make advanced care more accessible for many patients by reducing the cost of treatment.

Our corporate citizenship pillars – Global Leadership in Addressing Chronic Disease, Collaborative Culture of Innovation, Total Employee Engagement, and Progressive Environmental Stewardship – align our activities to achieve the greatest social and business impact.

Whether improving global health through our Greater Access Platform; attracting the best global talent by fostering a diverse and engaged workforce; or reducing energy costs along with our carbon footprint; corporate citizenship fuels our competitive advantage. It creates value on numerous levels, ranging from market growth, to employee retention, to corporate reputation. Our efforts yielded several highlights in fiscal year 2010:

• Medtronic took a leadership position in physician-industry transparency (link to: Corporate Citizenship at Medtronic, Ethics and Compliance, Approach page of this report). On June 1, 2010 we launched our Physician Registry, which discloses payments made to U.S. healthcare professionals and healthcare organizations for royalties and consulting services.
• We increased product donations by 165 percent compared to fiscal year 2009, with a special focus on fulfilling unmet needs in developing economies around the world through our nonprofit partners.
• Our coordinated response to the earthquake in Haiti generated more than $2 million in product donations, employee and company matching gifts, Medtronic Foundation grants, and employee volunteerism.
• We were recognized by several respected indexes for our corporate citizenship efforts, including Newsweek’s Green Rankings, the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (North America), and Corporate Responsibility magazine’s 100 Best Corporate Citizens List.

Guided by our Mission, Medtronic is helping to create enduring solutions to global healthcare challenges. We embrace the opportunity that lies ahead to work with governments, nonprofits, businesses, healthcare professionals, shareholders, and individuals to innovate for a better world.

William A. Hawkins
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer