Richard "Dick" Meyer Levy (born 1938) was the chief executive officer of Varian Medical Systems from 1999 to 2006 and was chairman of Varian Medical Systems' board of directors from 2002 until February 2014. Levy led the company during a period of rapid growth after it was spun off from Varian Inc. in 1999. Described as a "hands-on CEO", Levy was known to visit every one of his companies facilities, and he took steps to empower employees. Under his leadership, the company nearly tripled in size, and now dominates the medical radiation equipment market worldwide. Levy retired as CEO and was succeeded by Timothy E. Guertin in February 2006.

Levy has been described as a scientist and businessman of "remarkable vision and tenacious pragmatism" whose work led to the success of the Linac as a medical device, and to significant advances in radiation oncology. His "managerial astuteness" was an important element of Varian's commercial success in the medical field.

In 2003, Levy was an EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award Recipient for the Northern California Region.

References