vol. XVII no. 2

				In all of his 28 years in packaged goods, Rick Lenny ('74 BBA) had never faced a crisis like this one. The controlling trust of Hershey Foods wanted to diversify the company's holdings and was considering a sale of the candy giant to Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company for $12.5 billion. The residents of Hershey, Pa., were fighting the sale through petitions, pleas and politics. As chairman of the board, president and CEO of Hershey Foods, Lenny found himself facing dueling obligations - to lead the sale of the company while simultaneously continuing to run the business. "I had no idea what to expect, " says Lenny today, looking back to that time in 2002. "I couldn't prepare for it, but I had to lead. " Yet in many ways, Lenny's entire career had prepared him to lead Hershey through the situation. A veteran of the packaged foods business, Lenny had spent 18 years in brand and sales management positions at Kraft Foods. He likewise served as president of Pillsbury North America and president of Nabisco Biscuit Company. Just prior to joining Hershey in 2001, he was group vice president of Kraft, presiding over one of the largest operating units - Nabisco Biscuit and Snacks - with annual revenues of approximately $6 million. In fact, when Lenny was recruited to Hershey in 2001, outgoing CEO Kenneth L. Wolfe applauded his successor for having "the right combination of food industry experience and proven leadership ability to guide Hershey Foods in this new century. " Less than one year into his tenure, Lenny had to prove that leadership mettle when 2,800 union workers walked off the job over issues of back pay and health care costs. The atmosphere was charged, too, because Lenny himself was the first outsider CEO at a company that traditionally hired from within. While a boon for Wall Street, Lenny's reputation for zero growth overhead was a cause for unease with workers. Lenny prevailed. The strikers got to keep their share of health premiums at 6 percent, but they agreed to scaled-back wage increases for the next four years. And in the end, the proposed sale of Hershey was halted when the board of trustees folded to town pressure, refusing Wrigley's sweet deal. Prudential Equity Group applauded Lenny's "steady hand " for his handling of the proposed merger. How did Lenny weather the challenges? "By always keeping in mind the strategic direction and the best interests of the company, " he says. BORN AND MADE Running a large global business with revenues of more than $4 billion requires an attentiveness not only to investors but also to workers and an ever-changing consumer landscape. "You have to stay as connected as possible to the marketplace and not assume that the company's infrastructure will provide all the support and information you need, " Lenny says. "Flexibility is mandatory. " A positive attitude to win every day helps, too. "When you get to this level, the phone rarely rings with good news, " Lenny says, "but those challenging calls can be energizing. Every day, I have two choices in terms of leadership: I can create energy or I can sap energy. " Lenny's self-described leadership style resembles that of a coach and team players. "While I'm the most visible leader at Hershey Foods, I know that there are more than 13,000 people who get the job done, " he says. His game strategy is to set objectives, allocate resources well, make tough decisions when necessary and reward good performance. He has an open-door and open-mind approach that embraces employees and the marketplace. Experiences throughout his career have shaped Lenny's approach to leadership. He's worked under both good and bad leaders, learning from them all, he says. Role models such as Bob Eckert, Jim Kilts and Mike Miles taught him well. Eckert and Lenny earned MBAs at Northwestern University together, and after graduation they started jobs at Kraft Foods on the same day. While at Kraft, Lenny worked for Kilts and Miles. All four men have served as CEOs at some of the nation's top companies Ð currently Kilts at Gillette, Eckert at Mattel, Lenny at Hershey and previously Miles at Kraft. "I surmise that the majority of CEOs might have been called born leaders at some point in their careers, " says Lenny, "but I doubt that any of them set out to become a leader. " Top | Next Page

Copyright © 2004 Robinson College of Business/Georgia State University.