Phillip Ragon

{{short description|American entrepreneur and philanthropist}}

{{BLP sources|date=May 2019}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Phillip T. Ragon

| birth_name = Phillip Terrence Ragon

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1949|06|01}}

| birth_place = Arizona.U.S

| education = Massachusetts Institute of Technology (B.S. in Physics)

| alma_mater = MIT

| occupation = Businessman,Philanthropist

| known_for = Founder & CEO of InterSystems

| boards = Harvard Medical School Board of Fellows

MIT Corporation

MIT Jameel Clinic Advisory Board

| spouse = Susan Ragon

| children = 2

| awards = Golden Plate Award

}}

Phillip Terrence "Terry" Ragon is an American entrepreneur and philanthropist who founded InterSystems and is the current CEO.{{Cite web |title=Phillip T. (Terry) Ragon |url=https://www.intersystems.com/contact/phillip-t-terry-ragon/ |access-date=2025-02-23 |website=US Corporate |language=en}}

Early life and education

The son of a U.S. Air Force fighter pilot, Ragon was born in Arizona.{{Cite web|title=Phillip and Susan Ragon Foundation: Grants for Boston|url=https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/grants-in-boston-fundraising/phillip-and-susan-ragon-foundation-boston-grants.html|access-date=2020-11-23|website=Inside Philanthropy|language=en-US}} He grew up in a variety of states and graduated from high school in Bogota, Colombia. He graduated from MIT in 1971 with a B.S. in physics.{{Cite web|last=Trafton|first=Anne|date=4 February 2009|title=Alum's $100 million gift targets AIDS vaccines|url=http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2009/ragon-mit-tt0204.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205192010/http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2009/ragon-mit-tt0204.html|archive-date=2009-02-05|access-date=2009-02-04}}

Career

In 1978, Phillip Ragon founded InterSystems Corporation in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to develop and sell database management and healthcare information systems. He is currently the CEO and owner.{{cite web|title=Phillip T. (Terry) Ragon|url=https://www.intersystems.com/who-we-are/leadership/|access-date=2020-01-12|website=Intersystems}}

The company initially developed MUMPS-based systems, releasing ISM-11 for the DEC PDP-11. Over time, InterSystems acquired several MUMPS implementations, including DTM from Data Tree in 1993, DSM from Digital in 1995, and MSM from Micronetics in 1998, consolidating these technologies into its Caché database released in 1997. Subsequent products include Ensemble (2003), HealthShare (2006), and InterSystems IRIS Data Platform (2017), which integrates database management, interoperability, and analytics capabilities.{{Cite web |last=Woodie |first=Alex |date=2022-09-02 |title=InterSystems Seeks Growth, Visibility As It Expands Data Reach |url=https://www.bigdatawire.com/2022/09/01/intersystems-seeks-growth-visibility-as-it-expands-data-reach/?utm_source=chatgpt.com |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=BigDATAwire}}

InterSystems has expanded globally, establishing over 35 offices worldwide and serving clients in more than 80 countries. The company's software solutions are utilized across various industries, including healthcare, finance, and logistics. Notably, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs employs InterSystems IRIS to manage over 3 petabytes of data.{{Cite web |last=Norfolk |first=David |date=2022-12-08 |title=InterSystems - Bloor Research |url=https://bloorresearch.com/company/intersystems/?utm_source=chatgpt.com |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=bloorresearch.com |language=en-GB}}

Ragon is a member of the Harvard Medical School Board of Fellows, and a member of MIT Corporation (the governing body of MIT),{{Cite web|title=Board of Fellows {{!}} Harvard Medical School|url=https://hms.harvard.edu/about-hms/leadership/board-fellows|access-date=2019-09-26|website=Harvard University}} and a member of the advisory board of the MIT Jameel Clinic.{{Cite web|title=People|url=https://www.jclinic.mit.edu/people|access-date=2020-11-13|website=J-Clinic|language=en}}

In 2025, with a net worth of $3.4 billion, Forbes ranked Ragon No. 378 on the Forbes 400 list of the richest people in America.{{Cite web|last=Dolan|first=Kerry|last2=Paterson-Withorn|first2=Chase|last3=Wang|first3=Jennifer|title=The Forbes 400: The Definitive Ranking Of The Wealthiest Americans In 2020|url=https://www.forbes.com/forbes-400/|access-date=2020-09-22|website=Forbes}}

=Philanthropy=

In March 2017, Ragon, and wife Susan, signed The Giving Pledge, vowing to donate at least half of their money to philanthropic causes.{{Cite news|title=Another Massachusetts couple pledges to give away most of their wealth|website=The Boston Globe|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2017/03/01/another-massachusetts-couple-pledges-give-away-most-their-wealth/npEcZppj3Yzx6in818XSbI/story.html|access-date=2017-03-09}}{{cite web|date=2 March 2017|title=Billionaire couple living in Massachusetts pledges half their wealth to philanthropy|url=https://www.masslive.com/news/boston/2017/03/mass_software_founder_and_wife.html|access-date=2020-01-12|website=Mass Live}}

In 2009, Ragon pledged to donate US $100 million over 10 years period for AIDS research through the Phillip T. and Susan M. Ragon Institute at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) after witnessing the plight of the disease in South Africa.{{Cite news|date=4 February 2009|title=Businessman donates $100 million to AIDS research|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-aids-idUSTRE51353Q20090204|access-date=2020-11-23}} The Ragons donated $200 million to MGH in 2019, the largest donation in the hospital's history.{{cite web|date=May 2019|title=Mass General Receives $200 Million for Ragon Institute|url=https://giving.massgeneral.org/ragon-institute-200-million-donation/|access-date=2020-01-12|website=Massachusetts General}}

In April 2019, Ragon and his wife announced that they were donating a further $200 million to Massachusetts General Hospital for a vaccine-research center.{{Cite web|last=Di Mento|first=Maria|date=26 April 2019|title=Tech Billionaires Give $200 Million to Mass. General Hospital|url=https://www.philanthropy.com/article/tech-billionaires-give-200-million-to-mass-general-hospital/|access-date=2020-10-15|website=Philanthropy}}{{Cite web|last=Yakowicz|first=Will|title=The Biggest Philanthropic Gifts Of 2019|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/willyakowicz/2020/12/29/the-top-10-philanthropic-gifts-of-2019/|access-date=2020-10-15|website=Forbes|language=en}}

Personal life

Ragon is married to Susan M. Ragon, and they have two children. The couple resides in Massachusetts and actively supports various charitable initiatives{{Cite web |title=Phillip T. (Terry) Ragon: Phillip T. (Terry) Ragon Net Worth, Biography, Age, Spouse, Children & More |url=https://www.goodreturns.in/phillip-t-terry-ragon-net-worth-and-biography-blnr1850.html |access-date=2025-02-23 |website=Goodreturn |language=en}}

Awards and honors

In 2022, Ragon received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.{{cite web|title= Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement |website=www.achievement.org|publisher=American Academy of Achievement|url=https://achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/#business}}

References