Management

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Richard W. Dreiling

Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board

With Dollar General Corporation since 2008

Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board with Dollar General Corporation since 2008

Richard W. Dreiling joined Dollar General, the leading small-box retailer, in January 2008 as CEO, and was named chairman of the board in December 2008. He spearheaded the company's re-emergence as a public company through a successful Initial Public Offering on the NYSE November 13, 2009. 

Prior to coming to Dollar General, Dreiling had been the chairman and CEO of Duane Reade Holdings, Inc. Before that, Dreiling served as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Longs Drug Stores Corporation, a chain of retail drug stores on the West Coast and Hawaii, starting there in 2003. Before that, he was executive vice president of marketing, manufacturing and distribution of Safeway, Inc., a food and drug retailer. Earlier still, he served as president of Vons, a Southern California food and drug division of Safeway, Inc.

Dreiling earned a bachelor's degree in industrial relations from Rockhurst University in Missouri. He began his career in 1969 as a part-time clerk with Safeway, Inc. in Kansas and he worked his way through the retail ranks before being promoted in 1998 to president of Vons.

Dreiling serves on the Board of Directors of Lowe’s, Inc. He is also vice chairman of the Retail Industry Leaders Association and chairman of the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt. In 2011, Dreiling was named "Retailer of the Year" by Mass Market Retailer for his transformation of Dollar General into a major retail force. Dreiling was also listed among Supermarket News "Power 50 Retailers" for 2011 and 2012 and named “CEO of the Year” by the Retail Leader in 2012.

David M. Tehle

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

With Dollar General Corporation since 2004

Prior to joining Dollar General in June 2004, Tehle spent seven years with Haggar Corporation as executive vice president and chief financial officer. He has held leadership positions with several world leaders in manufacturing, including vice president of finance for The Stanley Works, Mechanics Tools Division, and vice president of finance and chief financial officer for Hat Brands Inc. Tehle gained 12 years of financial experience through management positions at Ryder System Inc. and through various financial and accounting positions at Texas Instruments Inc. Tehle earned a Bachelor of Science in economics from the University of Wisconsin and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Michigan. He has served as a director of Jack in the Box Inc. since December 2004. In June 2010, Tehle was named to Treasury and Risk magazine's 100 Most Influential People in Finance.

John W. Flanigan

Executive Vice President, Global Supply Chain

With Dollar General Corporation since 2008

Flanigan joined Dollar General as senior vice president, global supply chain in May 2008 and was promoted to executive vice president, global supply chain in March 2010. He has over 25 years of management experience in retail logistics. Prior to joining Dollar General, he was group vice president of logistics and distribution for Longs Drug Stores Corporation from October 2005 to April 2008. In this role, he was responsible for overseeing warehousing, inbound and outbound transportation and facility maintenance to service 500+ retail outlets. From September 2001 to October 2005 he served as vice president of logistics for Safeway, Inc. where he oversaw distribution of food products from Safeway distribution centers to all retail outlets, inbound traffic and transportation. He also held distribution and logistics leadership positions at Vons - a Safeway company, Specialized Distribution Management Inc., and Crum & Crum Logistics.

Susan S. Lanigan

Executive Vice President, General Counsel

With Dollar General Corporation since 2002

Lanigan joined Dollar General in July 2002 as vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary. She was promoted to senior vice president in October 2003 and to executive vice president in March 2005. Previously, Lanigan was senior vice president, general counsel and secretary with Zale Corporation, a specialty retailer of fine jewelry. Her legal experience also includes positions with Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. and the law firm of Troutman Sanders. Lanigan received her undergraduate and juris doctorate degrees from the University of Georgia. Lanigan is a director on the board of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation and serves on the executive board of the Nashville Area Red Cross.

Bob Ravener

Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer

With Dollar General Corporation since 2008

Bob Ravener is executive vice president and chief people officer at Dollar General, responsible for all human resources initiatives. He joined Dollar General in 2008 as senior vice president and chief people officer and was promoted to executive vice president and chief people officer in March 2010. Before joining Dollar General, Ravener was most recently senior vice president of U.S. partner resources for Starbucks Coffee Company where he oversaw all aspects of human resources activity for more than 10,000 stores, after being promoted from his role as vice president, partner resources-Eastern division. Prior to Starbucks, Ravener held vice president of human resources roles for The Home Depot Store Support Center and a domestic field division. He also served in executive roles at Footstar, Inc. and PepsiCo.

Ravener served in the U.S. Navy as a strategic weapons submarine officer. He is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and also earned an MBA in general management from New York University.

Gregory A. Sparks

Executive Vice President, Store Operations

With Dollar General Corporation since 2012

Mr. Sparks joined Dollar General in March 2012 as executive vice president of store operations. Prior to joining Dollar General, Sparks served as division president, Seattle Division, for Safeway Inc., a food and drug retailer, a role he had held since 2001. As division president of the Seattle Division, Sparks was responsible for the supervision of approximately 200 stores and approximately 23,000 employees in the northwest region and oversaw real estate, finance and operations of the Seattle Division. Sparks has 36 years of retail experience including a 34-year career with Safeway where he held roles of increasing responsibility including merchandising manager (1987), category manager (1987-1990), divisional director of merchandising, grocery and general merchandise (1990-1997) and divisional vice president of marketing (1997-2001).

Mr. Sparks received a B.S. in Management from Phillips University and his M.B.A. from The University of Phoenix. He is a board member of the Western Association of Food Chains and the Northwest Grocers Association.

Todd Vasos

Executive Vice President, Division President and Chief Merchandising Officer

With Dollar General Corporation since 2008

Todd Vasos is executive vice president, division president and chief merchandising officer responsible for merchandising, marketing and global sourcing. Prior to joining Dollar General in December 2008, Vasos was executive vice president and chief operating officer at Longs Drugs, where he was responsible for all pharmacy and front-end marketing, merchandising, procurement, supply chain, advertising, store development, store layout, store operations, loss prevention, store construction and the operation of three distribution centers. Before that, Vasos served for seven years as Longs' senior vice president and chief merchandising officer. In that role, he spearheaded the company's successful private label program, centralized key marketing and merchandising functions, significantly reduced inventory and developed and launched the company's 'store within a store' concepts. Vasos also has served in leadership positions at Eckerd Drug Corp. and Phar-Mor Food and Drug Inc. Vasos earned a bachelor's degree in marketing from Western Carolina University.

Anita Elliott

Senior Vice President and Controller

With Dollar General Corporation since 2005

Anita Elliott joined Dollar General in August 2005. Prior to joining Dollar General, Elliott served as Vice President and Controller of Big Lots, Inc., a closeout retailer, from May 2001 to August 2005. Overseeing a staff of 140 employees at Big Lots, Elliott was responsible for accounting operations, financial reporting and internal audit. Prior to serving at Big Lots, she served as Vice President and Controller for Jitney-Jungle Stores of America, Inc., a grocery retailer, from April 1998 to March 2001. At Jitney-Jungle, Elliott was responsible for the accounting operations and the internal and external financial reporting functions. Prior to serving at Jitney-Jungle, she practiced public accounting for 12 years, 6 of which were with Ernst & Young LLP.