Patrick McHale will retire from Graco in June after serving as chief executive since 2007. His successor will be Mark Sheahan, the company’s chief financial officer.
Sheahan, 56, joined Graco in 1995 and advanced to general manager of the Applied Fluid Technologies Division and then to CFO.
“After a thorough and thoughtful succession planning process, Mark is the clear choice to lead Graco into the future as president and CEO,” said Lee Mitau, chairman of the company’s board. “In addition to successful corporate roles including most recently as CFO, Mark has a decade of experience leading a large and complex Graco division where he successfully developed and implemented business strategies and delivered exceptional results.”
Mitau thanked McHale for his service.
“Pat’s contributions to Graco have been immense. His relentless drive for operational excellence, product innovation and superior customer service has propelled the company to ever higher levels of performance,” Mitau said.
McHale started at Graco more than 31 years ago, rising up the ranks until he was named CEO 13 years ago.
“It’s been a great honor to spend my career at Graco,” he said. “We have an outstanding team of employees, a high-performance and fact-based culture, great distributor and supplier partnerships, and a proud history of delivering high-quality and leading-technology products globally for nearly a century.”
McHale said Sheahan shares his commitment to Graco’s values and employees.
McHale plans to retire June 10 and remain as a consultant until Sept. 15 to assist with the transition.
Sheahan holds a bachelor’s degree in business from University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management and a law degree from William Mitchell College of Law.
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