W. Craig Jelinek

Last updated

Walter Craig Jelinek
W. Craig Jelinek 8 8 2013.jpg
Jelinek in 2013
Born (1952-08-08) August 8, 1952 (age 73)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Alma mater San Diego State University
OccupationBusinessman
Known forPresident and CEO of Costco, 2012–2023

Walter Craig Jelinek (born August 8, 1952) is an American businessman who served as president and CEO of Costco from 2012 to 2023, when he succeeded the company's founder, James Sinegal.

Contents

Early life

On August 8, 1952, Jelinek was born in Los Angeles, California to Walter Adolph Jelinek and Erdene Gordon. [1] [2] His father was of Czech descent (the surname is derived from Jelínek, which is common in the country). [3] In 1970, Jelinek graduated from Antelope Valley High School. [4] [5] [6]

Education

In 1975, Jelinek earned a bachelor's degree from San Diego State University. [4]

Career

Jelinek began his career at FedMart, later serving as an operations manager for the company in Los Angeles. [5] [7] In 1981, he joined Lucky Stores. [8]

Jelinek joined Costco as a warehouse manager in 1984 and later became manager of the company's Northwest region following the Price Club merger. He was named executive vice president of merchandising in 2004. [7] Jelinek joined Costco's board of directors in 2010 amid speculation that he was being prepared to succeed as chief executive officer. He was named president later that year and assumed the role of CEO in 2012 following the retirement of founder James Sinegal. [9] [10] [11]

Jelinek also serves on the board of Costco Wholesale UK Ltd. [12]

In 2018, Jelinek's annual base salary was reported as $800,000 by the Puget Sound Business Journal . [13] His base salary increased to $1,000,000 in 2020; that same year, his total compensation was $8,279,552, according to a Costco SEC filing. [14] In 2023, Jelinek's total compensation from Costco was $16.9 million, or 336 times the company's median employee pay for that year. [15]

In October 2023, Jelinek announced that he would step down as Costco's chief executive officer at the end of the year. He was succeeded by Ron Vachris in January 2024; Vachris had previously served as the company's chief operating officer and president. [10] [16] Jelinek remained on as an advisor until April 2024 and continues to serve as a member of Costco's board of directors. [17]

Awards

See also

References

  1. ↑ Jelinek (1952). "California Birth Index, 1905-1995". FamilySearch.
  2. ↑ Jelinek (1951). "California, County Marriages, 1850-1953". FamilySearch.
  3. ↑ Jelinek (1920). "United States Census, 1920". FamilySearch.
  4. 1 2 "Craig Jelinek". Marquis Who's Who . Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  5. 1 2 "W Craig Jelinek". BoardroomInsiders.
  6. ↑ "Costco CEO Craig Jelinek added to Outlook Conference". theavtimes.com. November 27, 2012. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  7. 1 2 Allison, Melissa (February 2, 2010). "Costco names apparent heir to CEO Sinegal". The Seattle Times. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
  8. ↑ "Inside the career of Costco CEO Craig Jelinek, who's worked with the warehouse club almost since its birth". businessinsider.com. March 17, 2019. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  9. ↑ Allison, Melissa (April 10, 2011). "In Person: Costco president Craig Jelinek keeps a low profile". The Seattle Times. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
  10. 1 2 Geraldo, Renata (October 18, 2023). "Costco CEO Craig Jelinek to step down, hand the reins to longtime insider". The Seattle Times. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Executive Profile: W. Craig Jelinek". Bloomberg. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
  12. ↑ "Business Leaders". Market Screener. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  13. ↑ Cain, Aine (March 17, 2019). "Inside the career of Costco CEO Craig Jelinek, who's worked with the warehouse club almost since its birth". Business Insider. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  14. ↑ "Proxy Statement pursuant to section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934" . Retrieved December 24, 2021.
  15. ↑ Anderson, Sarah (August 29, 2024). "Executive Excess 2024: The "Low Wage 100" corporations are enriching CEOs at the expense of workers and long-term investment" (PDF). Institute for Policy Studies . Archived (PDF) from the original on August 29, 2024. Retrieved August 31, 2024.
  16. ↑ Klein, Daniel. "Costco shares a secret as it makes a huge change". MSN. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
  17. ↑ Bregel, Sarah (October 19, 2023). "From forklift driver to CEO: Who is incoming Costco boss Ron Vachris?". Fast Company. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  18. ↑ "Craig Jelinek". ced.org. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.