Throwback Thursday: End of an era
The Jan. 15, 2007, issue of Home Channel News, the forerunner of HBSDealer, reported “Nardelli Era Ends At Home Depot.” It was the page-one cover story and one of the most-clicked articles on the company’s website.
Those in the home improvement industry back in 2007 will certainly remember the historic changing of the guard.
From the article:
“In what the company called a ‘mutual agreement,’ Bob Nardelli resigned from his position as Home Depot chairman, president and CEO on Jan. 2. But not without walking out the door with a severance package worth about $210 million, including $20 million in cash – a reminder of what became a great divide between Nardelli and the company.”
The article also pointed to sales growth at Depot during the Nardelli — nearly doubling from $45.7 billion to $81.5 billion in seven years. Profits increased 123% over the same period. However, critics decried a top-down management style that clashed with the company’s culture.
At the time of his ascension to CEO, little was known about Frank Blake outside Home Depot and General Electric, his previous employer. And little did anyone realize that Blake would in a few years make regular appearances on business media lists of “best CEOs.”
Blake was succeeded by Craig Menear on Nov. 1, 2014.
# # #
Did you have memories of Nardelli or Blake? Share with us here.
Those in the home improvement industry back in 2007 will certainly remember the historic changing of the guard.
From the article:
“In what the company called a ‘mutual agreement,’ Bob Nardelli resigned from his position as Home Depot chairman, president and CEO on Jan. 2. But not without walking out the door with a severance package worth about $210 million, including $20 million in cash – a reminder of what became a great divide between Nardelli and the company.”
The article also pointed to sales growth at Depot during the Nardelli — nearly doubling from $45.7 billion to $81.5 billion in seven years. Profits increased 123% over the same period. However, critics decried a top-down management style that clashed with the company’s culture.
At the time of his ascension to CEO, little was known about Frank Blake outside Home Depot and General Electric, his previous employer. And little did anyone realize that Blake would in a few years make regular appearances on business media lists of “best CEOs.”
Blake was succeeded by Craig Menear on Nov. 1, 2014.
# # #
Did you have memories of Nardelli or Blake? Share with us here.