If there's one thing that Darren R. Jackson has learned in his 20-plus years working in the corporate world, it's that there's never one person who can figure it all out. Jackson, who has been recognized as one of the "most admired CFOs in America" by Institutional Investor Magazine, and listed as one of the top 20 young chief financial officers likely to shape the profession by CFO Magazine, today was appointed president and chief executive officier of Advance Auto Parts Inc., effective Jan. 7, 2008. "I'm starting from a place that has a great team, a great set of values and is pointed in the right direction," Jackson said in an exclusive interview with Aftermarket Business. "For the past six months, the board has been putting together a growth plan and working to re-calibrate the company. With any luck, I'll be able to help what I think is already a pretty wonderful team grow the company even faster." Jackson will replace John Brouillard, who served as the company's interim president and CEO. Brouillard has been named non-executive chairman of the company. "Since joining our board in 2004, Darren has been instrumental in facilitating the strategic redirection of the company," says Brouillard. "In addition, he has built an exceptionally strong track record of leadership in the retailing industry and has the unique advantage of knowing our company based on his board of directors service. Darren also provided the board with a comprehensive overview of how Advance Auto Parts could best capitalize on growth opportunities while enhancing value for all of our stakeholders. We are delighted that he has agreed to become our president and chief executive officer and look forward to working with him as we pursue our mutual goal of becoming the leader in our industry." Jackson credits his past retail experiences at Best Buy Co., Inc., where he currently is executive vice president of Customer Operating Groups, and Carson Pirie Scott and Nordstrom, where he spent a large portion of his early career, with helping make this transition period more or less stress-free. "I would say that I've had the opportunity to have three wonderful retail experiences," Jackson says. "And I think it will be a combinantion of all three experiences that I will bring to support the Advance team and the Advance strategy, and guide the company as it grows." Jackson's initial plans for the company includes a lot of listening — to employees, customers and suppliers. "I have a lot of learning to do," he admits. "But I know that the key to my success, and the company's success, is for me to start by listening. And by unlearning old things to make way for the new." Part of Jackson's strategy includes taking a hard look at the current state of Advance's DIY business and re-evaluating its growth strategy. Jackson acknowledges that the DIY business is something Advance does very well, and expects that it is something that will keep growing in the future. But he cautions that this growth can only happen if the company continues to listen to and rediscover what its customer base wants — and needs. With store growth, Jackson is taking a rather cautious approach. "One of the things that good growth companies do is to step back," he says. "We've taken a step back in the number of renovations and total number of new stores this past year. We're also taking a more critical look at our store formats to see what works and what doesn't work. We want to make sure we're not duplicating something that didn't work in the past." As for the commercial side of the business, Jackson expects it to continue growing even faster than the DIY side. But the growth of the commercial side of the business is similar to that on the DIY side in that it should always reflect the customer's needs. "The growth in the commercial sector reflects how the end use customer is choosing to use our products," he says. "And if a company wants to continue to grow, it will follow the customer's needs. A lot of my work will be to help make these changes move forward, and support Advance as the company continues to grow." Jackson holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from Marquette University. He also serves as vice chairman of the board of trustees of the University and is on the board of the Cristo Rey Network. For more information about Advance Auto Parts, visit the company's Web site. |
