Ronald L. "Ron" Sargent (born 1955) was the chairman and CEO of

Staples, Inc. Staples Inc. is an American retail company headquartered in Framingham, Massachusetts, that offers products and services designed to support working and learning. The company opened its first store in Brighton, Massachusetts on May 1, 1986. By ...

until September 2016, when he was succeeded by Shira Goodman.Chesto, Jon (May 31, 2016)

Early life

In 1955 Sargent was born in Fort Thomas, Kentucky, U.S.

Education

In 1977, Sargent earned a BA from Harvard University. In 1979, Sargent earned an MBA from

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

Career

Sargent started his career in 1979, stocking shelves and operating the cash register at

Kroger Co The Kroger Company, or simply Kroger, is an American retail company that operates (either directly or through its subsidiaries) supermarkets and multi-department stores throughout the United States. Founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cinci ...

. Sargent joined Staples in 1989. In 1991, Sargent become head of the Staples catalog division, and in 1997 he became head of North American operations. In 2002, Sargent became the CEO of Staples. On May 31, 2016, Ron Sargent announced that he would step down as CEO of Staples after the company's annual shareholder meeting on June 14, 2016. The company's board of directors and Sargent mutually agreed that it was time for new management to step in to help Staples grow after Staples and Office Depot called off their $6 billion merger amid regulatory roadblocks. Sargent would remain a director and non-executive chairman through the end of the company's fiscal year in January 2017. On February, 20th, 2017, Wells Fargo announced that Sargent was elected to their board as an independent director. "Ron brings deep experience in consumer retail and marketing, as well as in the management of a large workforce serving customers globally through a variety of channels,” said Stephen Sanger, the chairman of the board.(February 21, 2017)

References

Staples Inc. people 1955 births American retail chief executives Living people Harvard Business School alumni Harvard University alumni Place of birth missing (living people) {{US-CEO-stub