John Mackey Steps Down as Whole Foods Chairman of the Board, Stays on as CEO
John Mackey, Chairman and CEO of Whole Foods Market, Inc., is stepping down
as chairman voluntarily. Shareholders have been pushing for the move, demanding that the chairman of the board and the CEO be two different people.
For years, governance experts have urged adoption of measures that would prohibit a company's CEO from serving as board chairman because of the influence executives wield over directors. Legislation was introduced this fall in Congress that would separate the positions of corporate chairman and chief executive as well as giving investors a greater say in how directors are elected to company boards.
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Mackey, who held the Whole Foods chairman title since the high-end grocery chain started in 1978, will remain chief executive and a member of the board.
Dr. John Elstrott, a director since 1995 and lead director since 2001, will become chairman as the company transfers the lead director's duties to that office.
Splitting the jobs of ceo and chairman of the boards is the latest corporate trend. Bank of Americna will split the two posts in April. The theory is that splitting the jobs will make corporations more honest and transparent.
