Bob DeSantis

Bob DeSantis is executive vice president and chief strategy and corporate operations officer at Intuitive. He leads strategic planning and corporate operational management for the business.

DeSantis joined Intuitive in 2013 as vice president, instruments and accessories, new product introduction. His role was later expanded to include leading the product development, marketing, engineering, and operations teams for the instruments, accessories, and endoscope portfolios. DeSantis has also played a key role in the expansion and scaling of Intuitive’s global manufacturing operations. Most recently, he served as chief product officer, leading the global teams that develop and manufacture the company’s robotic platforms, as well as supporting global operations, program management, technical services, user experience, and product management functions.

DeSantis started his career at U.S. Surgical where he was part of the research team that developed laparoscopic technologies that enabled the first wave of minimally invasive surgery. Later as part of Covidien, he served as vice president of R&D for surgical devices leading the mechanical and energy devices organizations. He also led the group that developed the first commercialized single incision laparoscopic surgery.

DeSantis earned BS and MS degrees in mechanical engineering from the State University of New York, Buffalo. He also holds a certificate in innovation management from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.