Gregory Wasson

Gregory David Wasson
Born (1958-10-19) October 19, 1958
Lafayette, Indiana, US
Education Twin Lakes High School, Monticello, Indiana
Alma mater Purdue University
Occupation Co-founder and president of Wasson Enterprise, former president and CEO of Walgreens, director of Verizon Communications, director of PNC Financial Services Group, director of Health Care Service Corporation
Successor Stefano Pessina
Website http://www.wassonenterprise.com

Gregory David Wasson (born October 19, 1958) is co-founder and president of Wasson Enterprise,[1] a family-based investment office, and the former president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ: WBA). Prior to the merger of Walgreens and Alliance Boots,[2] Wasson was president and CEO of Walgreens,[3] the US's largest retail community pharmacy chain.

Wasson served as CEO at Walgreens from 2009 to 2014. Since joining the company in 1980, he was appointed to positions of increasing responsibility, including president of Walgreens Health Initiatives in 2002, senior vice president in 2004, executive vice president in 2005, and president and chief operating officer in 2007.

Wasson has been a director of Verizon Communications Inc.,[4] since March 2013.[5] Since July 2015, he has been a director of PNC Financial Services.[6][7] He joined Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC), the US's largest customer-owned health insurance company, as a director in November 2015.

Early life

Wasson was born October 19, 1958 in Lafayette, Indiana, the third of five children of Richard "Dick" and Phyllis Wasson.[8] His family lived in Delphi until he was 13, and then moved to nearby Monticello, Indiana. Wasson graduated from Twin Lakes High School.[9]

Two of Wasson's relatives were pharmacists, and they encouraged him to study pharmacy at Purdue University. Wasson met his future wife there, also a pharmacy student. They married on their graduation day in 1981.[8]

Career

Wasson joined Walgreens as a pharmacy intern in 1980 while a student. Three days after his marriage, they relocated to Houston, where he had a post as a management trainee. He was managing his first store four months later.[8]

He was promoted to district manager in Milwaukee in 1986, with 30 store managers reporting to him.[8] Wasson was promoted to a regional vice president of the store operations division in 1999.

In 2001, he was promoted again to Walgreens vice president and made an executive vice president of Walgreens Health Initiatives, the company's pharmacy benefit manager (PBM). Wasson was promoted to president of Walgreens Health Initiatives in 2002, Walgreens senior vice president in 2004 and to a Walgreens executive vice president in 2005.

In 2007, he was named president and chief operating officer of Walgreens, succeeding Jeff Rein. In 2009, Greg was named CEO.

While President and CEO, Walgreens celebrated the opening of its 7,000th store nationwide with a grand opening in Brooklyn, N.Y., Walgreens offered H1N1 vaccinations at all of its pharmacies and clinics nationwide to fight the flu pandemic.[10] In 2010 and 2011, Walgreens completed its acquisition of the Duane Reade drugstore chain in New York and online retailer drugstore.com respectively.[10] Walgreens completed its acquisition of Bioscrip's community specialty pharmacies and centralized specialty and mail service pharmacy businesses in 2012.

In 2012, Walgreens and Alliance Boots announced they have entered into a strategic transaction to create the first global pharmacy-led, health and wellbeing enterprise.[11] After two-years, on December 31, 2014, Walgreens completed the global merger with Alliance Boots[12]—the leading pharmacy-led health and beauty group across Europe with a presence in more than 25 countries—a strategic partnership launched in 2012. After the close of the second step of the Alliance Boots transaction, Greg retired from Walgreens after a 35-year career with the company.[13]

In 2016, Greg and his wife Kim Wasson founded Wasson Enterprise.[1] Wasson Enterprise—WE—is a family-based investment firm whose goal is to connect, mentor, market, and commercialize sustainable businesses.

In addition to his role at Wasson Enterprise, Wasson serves as a director of several companies. A director for Verizon Communications since March 2013.[14] A director of PNC Financial Services Group since July 2015.[15] A director of Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC),[16] the largest customer-owned health insurance company,[17] since November 2015.

Wasson has been a director of AmerisourceBergen Corporation,[18] a global pharmaceutical sourcing and distribution services, with which Walgreens has a long-term strategic partnership,[19] and a directorsof Alliance Boots GmbH.

Past roles include chairman of National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS)[20][21] the Vice Chairman of Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA),[22] member of the Healthcare Leadership Council (HLC),[23] The Wall Street Journal CEO Council,[24] and the civic committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago,[25] as well as being a member of the British-American Business Council International Advisory Board.[26] He served many years as a board member of Consumer Goods Forum (CGF),[27] The Field Museum,[28] and the Midtown Educational Foundation[29] and a member of the Illinois chapter of the American Cancer Society's CEOs Against Cancer.[30]

Wasson is on the trustee board of the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry (MSI).[31] and Board of World Business Chicago (WBA) as well as a member of The Business Council, CEO Perspective, The Economic Club of Chicago, The Commercial Club of Chicago and Chicago Club. Wasson and his wife Kimberly are the co-chairs of the 36th Annual MSI Columbian Ball.

In 2015, Wasson received the Sheldon W. Fantle Lifetime Achievement Award from National Association of Chain Drug Stores’ (NACDS)[32] and the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) gave Wasson the GMA Hall of Achievement Award.[33] In 2016, he received two awards from Purdue University, the Distinguished Alumni Award, and the Career Achievement Award.

Personal life

Wasson married Kimberly "Kim" Wasson (née Munt) on May 16, 1981,[34] and they have two daughters. He and his family attend Long Grove Community Church, where his wife Kim previously served as the compassion/outreach ministry leader.[35]

His younger brother, Stewart "Brad" Wasson, also has a BS in Pharmacy from Purdue (1985), and had a long career at Walgreens, where he was vice president of operations.

References

  1. 1 2 "Wasson Enterprise". Wasson Enterprise. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  2. ↑ "Walgreens and Alliance Boots Form Strategic Partnership to Create the First Global Pharmacy-Led, Health and Wellbeing Enterprise (NYSE:WBA)". investor.walgreensbootsalliance.com. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  3. ↑ "Welcome to Walgreens - Your Home for Prescriptions, Photos and Health Information". Walgreens.com. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  4. ↑ "Gregory D. Wasson - Verizon Board of Directors". Verizon.com. 2016-12-22. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  5. ↑ "Gregory D. Wasson". www.verizon.com. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  6. ↑ "Corporate Overview". PNC. 2016-12-31. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  7. ↑ "PNC Bank - Biography". phx.corporate-ir.net. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Frost, Peter (25 June 2012). "Executive Profile: Greg Wasson, CEO of Walgreen Co". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  9. ↑ "Delphi native is Walgreen's new president and COO". Carroll County Comet. 2007-04-25. Retrieved 3 November 2014.
  10. 1 2 "Walgreens Historical Highlights | Walgreens.com". Walgreens. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  11. ↑ "Walgreens and Alliance Boots Form Strategic Partnership to Create the First Global Pharmacy-Led, Health and Wellbeing Enterprise (NYSE:WBA)". investor.walgreensbootsalliance.com. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  12. ↑ "Walgreens and Alliance Boots Complete Step 2 of Merger to Form First Global Pharmacy-Led, Health and Wellbeing Enterprise (NYSE:WBA)". investor.walgreensbootsalliance.com. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  13. ↑ "Walgreens President and CEO Greg Wasson Announces He Will Retire Following Completion of Merger with Alliance Boots | Walgreens Newsroom". news.walgreens.com. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  14. ↑ "Gregory D. Wasson". www.verizon.com. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  15. ↑ "PNC Bank - Biography". phx.corporate-ir.net. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  16. ↑ "Health Care Service Corporation". HCSC. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  17. ↑ "Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC) – Who We Are". www.hcsc.com. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  18. ↑ "Corporate Overview". AmerisourceBergen. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  19. ↑ "News Release". AmerisourceBergen. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  20. ↑ "Home Page - National Association of Chain Drug Stores". Nacds.org. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  21. ↑ "Wasson Hammers Theme of Innovation, Engagement at NACDS Regional Chain Conference". www.nacds.org. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  22. ↑ "Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) Home". RILA. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  23. ↑ "Healthcare Leadership Council – Care. Collaborate. Change". Hlc.org. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  24. ↑ "The Wall Street Journal CIO Network Conference". Ceocouncil.wsj.com. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  25. ↑ "The Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago - Our focus: improving Chicago as a place to live, work and conduct business". Civiccommittee.org. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  26. ↑ "BABC". BABC. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  27. ↑ "Gregory Wasson". Theconsumergoodsforum.com. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  28. ↑ "About the Museum". The Field Museum. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  29. ↑ "Midtown Educational Foundation". Midtown-metro.org. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  30. ↑ "CEOs Against Cancer". Cancer.org. Retrieved 2017-01-19.
  31. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-04-09. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  32. ↑ "Greg Wasson, David Heist and Lou Martire Honored with Chain Pharmacy's Highest Honors at NACDS Annual Meeting". www.nacds.org. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  33. ↑ "GMA to Honor Three Industry Leaders with Hall of Achievement Awards | GMA". www.gmaonline.org. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  34. ↑ "Rising to the Top at Walgreens". Purdue. Retrieved 3 November 2014.
  35. ↑ "Kim Wasson | LinkedIn". www.linkedin.com. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
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