Medtronic names Omar Ishrak Chairman and CEO

Medtronic Inc., the Fortune 500 medical-technology company headquarted in Fridley, announced Wednesday that Omar Ishrak will take over as chairman and chief executive officer.

Ishrak comes from GE Healthcare Systems, where he has been president and CEO. He replaces William Hawkins, who that he would retire from Medtronic this year.

The announcement follows news a little more than a week ago that Hawkins would stay on longer than planned—even into 2012—while the board of directors settled on his replacement.

Ishrak will have his office in Fridley, but a Medtronic spokesman said Wednesday he didn't know where the new CEO would reside for his new job in Minnesota. (He's coming from GE Healthcare's headquarters in Wauwatosa, WI.)*

Medtronic employs 8,000 people in Minnesota, including 2,800 at its headquarters campus on Hwy. 65 and Rice Creek campus on Old Central Avenue NE. The company said in April it would as part of .

*Clarification: This article originally suggested that Ishrak's job with GE Healthcare was in England, instead of the actual location of Wauwatosa, WI.