DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Walgreens has announced, consistent with its succession process, the appointment of James A. Skinner, Walgreens board member since 2005 and recently retired McDonald's Corp. chief executive officer, as the new non-executive chairman of Walgreens.
Skinner will succeed Al McNally, who has served on the Walgreens board since 1999 and as non-executive chairman since 2009. McNally will continue serving on the Walgreens board.
As McDonald's CEO, Skinner led the world's largest foodservice company with more than 33,000 restaurants in 119 countries. He served as McDonald's CEO beginning in November 2004, and prior to that in a variety of other leadership positions for the company, both in the United States and globally. He retired as McDonald's CEO in 2012.
"Jim Skinner's long and successful record in retail and customer experience, both across the nation and around the world, will be enormously helpful at a time when Walgreens is launching with Alliance Boots the first global pharmacy-led health and wellbeing enterprise," Walgreens president and CEO Greg Wasson said.
Bill Foote, Walgreens board director and chairman of the nominating and governance committee, said, "Al McNally's extraordinary leadership as our board's first lead director and first non-executive chairman of the board was instrumental and indispensable as Walgreens advanced its transformation launched in 2008 to become America's most trusted and convenient provider of consumer goods and services, and pharmacy, health and wellness solutions. We are grateful that Walgreens will continue to benefit from Al's leadership and vision on the board."
He added, "As Walgreens moves forward with its strategy to become a U.S. and world leader in pharmacy-led health and wellbeing, Jim Skinner's long experience on the Walgreens board, and decades of global success with McDonalds in expanding to Europe and emerging markets, make him an exceptional choice to lead our board into the future on behalf of shareholders and stakeholders."
McNally served as the Walgreens board's first lead director, beginning in January 2008. He subsequently served as chairman and acting CEO, and as non-executive chairman since 2009. He previously served as CEO of Harris Bank from 1993 to 2002 and chairman of Harris Financial Corp. from 1998 to 2006.
"Al's leadership on Walgreens board has helped to move this company and our iconic brand through an historic transformation and into a new century of service, success and growth potential," Wasson said. "I have truly benefited and appreciated his sound counsel and advice during my three-and-a-half years as CEO. The value of his service to our board is--and I know will continue to be--immeasurable."
As the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2011 sales of $72 billion, Walgreens operates 7,907 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
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