User:Hmich176/Hersheypark/Hershey E&R/List of HE&R Chief Executives

''For the list of Hersheypark general managers, see here. ''

General manager
From 1928 to some time in the 1930s, there was a position known as General Manager of Hershey Estates. This made the president position, first filled by William F. R. Murrie, who was also president of the Hershey Chocolate Corporation, generally a figurehead position.

The only general manager of Hershey Estates was Charles F. Ziegler, from January 1, 1928 until sometime in the 1930s.

President
From 1928 to 1968, the chief executive of Hershey Entertainment & Resorts Company (during this period of time called Hershey Estates), was the person who had the title of president. The position was created in 1928 - for the prior two months in 1927, the company only had a board of directors.

Chief Executive Officer
Hershey Entertainment & Resorts created the position of Chief Executive Officer in 1968. This was a higher level position than president; this means that the person in the role of president was now the person-in-waiting to become the chief executive of the company. The chief executive officer held a seat on the company's board of directors. It is unclear exactly how the title was used after it was announced in 1968. As the first person to hold the role was also elevated to Chairman of the Board, Arthur Whiteman's title was often referred as Chairman of the Board rather than Chief Executive Officer.

When Whiteman retired, James E. Bobb succeeded him as Chairman of the Board, but remained as President of the company. It is unclear if the Chief Executive Officer title existed or had simply dropped out of use; however, it is more likely that the title was not given to Bobb since he was obviously temporarily promoted as leader of the company. Bobb retired 3 months after becoming Chairman of the Board, Edward R. Book succeeding him as chairman and president of the company. At some point in his 13 year leadership, Book resumed the title of CEO, which brought the CEO position to the top leadership position in the company as it is today.

The only exception to this is when J. Bruce McKinney stepped down as CEO in 1999. McKinney, who had been promoted to the position of chairman of the board of directors of the company in 1989, remained chairman for another year (retiring in April 2000). In that role, he remained the face of the company much more than his successor as CEO, Scott J. Newkam was during that year.

CEO Emeritus
In June of 2016, Chief Executive Officer William F. Simpson notified the Board of Directors of the company of his intention to resign from his position effective January 5, 2018. On September 30, 2016, John Lawn was named president of the company. It was also announced he would succeed Simpson as CEO. On June 14, 2017, Lawn was promoted to CEO effective that day, and Simpson resigned as CEO, taking the title CEO Emeritus. CEO Emeritus is an honorific title and had no actual responsibilities attached to it.

This is the only time this title has been used. The title was in place from June 14, 2017, until January 5, 2018.

Chairman of the Board
The title of Chairman of the Board was created in 1968 in tandem with the new chief executive officer role, to give that position a seat on the company's board of directors. In more recent years, when a new chief executive has been hired, the position has been left vacant for approximately a year, and the chief executive seated as a director on the board of directors. After that period the chief executive would be promoted to chairman of the board and their old seat filled by a newly appointed director.

Chairman of the Board is not a higher position than Chief Executive Officer because the board of directors is outside the chain of command of the company.