Edward Decker (born 1963) is an American businessman and, since 2022, the

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

and

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

of the world's largest

home improvement The concept of home improvement, home renovation, or remodeling is the process of renovating or making additions to one's home. Home improvement can consist of projects that upgrade an existing home interior (such as electrical and plumbing), ...

company,

The Home Depot The Home Depot, Inc., is an American multinational home improvement retail corporation that sells tools, construction products, appliances, and services, including fuel and transportation rentals. Home Depot is the largest home improvement re ...

. He was scheduled to become the

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

of the company in October 2022.

Early life

Edward Decker grew up in

Fairview Township, Erie County, Pennsylvania Fairview Township is a Township (Pennsylvania), township in Erie County, Pennsylvania, Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Situated on the southern shore of Lake Erie, it was one of the county's sixteen original townships, and was founded ...

, and attended Fairview High School there. In his high school years, he begun managing landscaping and gardening for both residential and commercial customers, after having mowed and helped landscape his family's lawn from the age of eight. Decker graduated from the

College of William and Mary The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William III a ...

in 1985 with a BA in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and from

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...

in 1993 with an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

Career

Prior to working for

, Decker worked in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

for PNC and worked in business development and finance positions at

Kimberly-Clark Kimberly-Clark Corporation is an American multinational personal care corporation that produces mostly paper-based consumer products. The company manufactures sanitary paper products and surgical & medical instruments. Kimberly-Clark brand n ...

and their property

Scott Paper Company The Scott Paper Company was the world's largest manufacturer and marketer of sanitary tissue products with operations in 22 countries. Its products were sold under a variety of well-known brand names, including ''Scott Tissue'', ''Cottonelle'', ...

, moving to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

for the latter positions. At Home Depot, Decker held multiple executive positions following his hiring in 2000, including managing their store and online merchandising. In October 2020, Decker became

and

chief operating officer A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the "C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if t ...

at Home Depot. Decker was announced as the new

and president at Home Depot in January 2022 after 22 years with the company. Decker's appointment to the position coincided with renewed demand for home improvement materials following a lull spurred by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Decker took the position in March that year. As CEO, Decker announced Home Depot's record earnings and sales quarter, the company partially citing a global rise in inflation, though Decker also pointed to the rise in "

DIY "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and semi ...

" home projects as bolstering spending. In August 2022, the board of Home Depot announced that it had elected Decker to assume the position of

on October 1 that year, replacing the retiring

Craig Menear Craig Menear (born ) is an American business executive. He serves as the chairman and is the former chief executive officer of The Home Depot. Early life Menear was born in Flint, Michigan. His father worked as a tool and die maker for General ...

, who Decker had previously replaced as CEO and company president.

Personal life

Decker and his wife Cathy have two adult daughters. Decker has donated at least $5800 to the 2024 re-election campaigns of Democratic U.S. Senator

Joe Manchin Joseph Manchin III (born August 24, 1947) is an American politician and businessman serving as the senior United States senator from West Virginia, a seat he has held since 2010. A member of the Democratic Party, Manchin was the 34th governor of ...

of West Virginia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Decker, Ted 1963 births Living people 21st-century American businesspeople American business executives Businesspeople from Pennsylvania College of William & Mary alumni People from Erie County, Pennsylvania The Home Depot people Tepper School of Business alumni