Bob McDonald

Power 50 Ranking: 27 Title: President and CEO Company: Procter & Gamble Co. Key Developments: Bob McDonald named president and CEO of Procter & Gamble. What's Next: Cutting SKUs by 30%; cutting new-product introductions by 50%.

When Bob McDonald gets off a plane in any market, the first thing he does is meet with consumers and then tags along as they shop. The purpose of such visits is to determine consumer needs and, subsequently, use the information to help Procter & Gamble innovate.

McDonald assumed the role of chief executive officer just weeks ago, succeeding A.G. Lafley, who is now chairman of the board. Though new to the CEO’s position, the West Point graduate and former Army captain is a P&G veteran.

He joined P&G about 30 years ago, spending years leading the Cincinnati-based firm’s businesses in the Philippines, Japan and South Korea. He most recently served as chief operating officer.

McDonald is outspoken about his desire to improve people’s lives. It’s that thinking that motivated the former Boy Scout to join the Army. After his five-year service, he sought out a company that had the same principles. P&G, he has said, fit the bill.

The key to improving people’s lives is innovation, according to McDonald. “Innovation is the primary driver of growth,” he said at the Food Marketing Institute’s Private Brands Summit last month.

He noted that P&G once was technology-driven, not consumer-driven. The result: “We were creating products that people didn’t want.”

The company made a change for the better, resulting in such products as the Olay Professional line and Clairol Perfect 10 hair color. Innovation has also translated into new franchise agreements like Tide dry cleaners and Mr. Clean carwashes.

Looking ahead, innovation will come in the form of simplification, including cutting SKUs by 30%, and reducing new-product introductions by 50% — but making the ones brought to market bigger and better. “These are the things we are doing to take advantage of our scale,” he said.

Bill Bishop, chairman of Willard Bishop, Barrington, Ill., said Lafley had a long and successful run, but McDonald provides a necessary  leadership change. “This is a wonderful chance for a new person to impose their vision — a vision very well calibrated for the needs of today,” Bishop said.

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Retailers Cut Ties With Egg Farm
Nov 28, 2011, Supermarket News
LITCHFIELD, Minn. — Several retailers have ended their relationships with the egg supplier Sparboe Farms here after the animal rights group Mercy For Animals released an undercover video this month showing poor treatment of chickens at Sparboe facilities in Iowa, Minnesota and Colorado. McDonald's will no longer be accepting Sparboe eggs through the direct supplier Cargill, according to a statement

2011 Power 50: No. 27 BOB McDONALD
Jul 18, 2011, Supermarket News
Chairman, president and CEO/Procter & Gamble Co. KEY DEVELOPMENTS: Filling pipeline with innovations; global expansion. WHAT'S NEXT: Managing unexpected global volatility; launch Tide Pods. Bob McDonald, who is into his third year as head of Cincinnati-based Procter & Gamble Co., executes on his global vision developed and developing countries and he applies vertical and horizontal vision in expanding

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Jul 18, 2011, Supermarket News
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May 02, 2011, Supermarket News, By CHRISTINA VEIDERS
Soggy appropriately is the forecast for the baby diaper category as young families search for best buys.

Robert A. McDonald
Jul 09, 2010, Supermarket News

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