Next Up: Andrew Schindler, Reynolds American Executive Chairman
January 23, 2005 5:03 pm by Gene BorioSchindler, Andrew
US Fact Witness
Mr. Schindler is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. He is also Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings, Inc., the parent company of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. He has held those positions since 1995. Prior to that, he held the following positions at Reynolds (with some intermittent stints working for its parent company):
–1976: National Manager of Sales Personnel
–1979: Director of Organizational Development
–1981: Plant Manager in Reynolds Facility # 64
–1988: Vice President of Personnel
–1989: Senior Vice President for Operations
–1991: Executive Vice President for Operations
–1994: President and Chief Operating Officer
–1995-present: President and CEO
Mr. Schindler’s background is in sales, and even today he is involved in every company marketing campaign as it develops and he gives it final approval. Despite his running the company at the time of and since the Master Settlement Agreement (”MSA”), under his direction, Reynolds made no effort to impose additional checks on the content of its ads in response to the MSA – e.g., making no changes in the content of its ads in response to the MSA. Nor did Reynolds make any changes to the way it markets the sponsorship event it maintained after the MSA. He also served on the Council for Tobacco Research from 1996-98. With the merger between Reynolds and Brown, Williamson, Schindler will be Executive Chairman of the new company (Reynolds American Inc.) for a six-month period after which he will move to the role of Non-Executive Chairman.