ATLANTA (AP) — James P. Kelly, chairman and chief executive of United Parcel Service, announced his retirement Wednesday after 37 years working at the world's top package delivery company.
UPS said he will be replaced by the company's vice chairman, Michael L. Eskew. The moves were approved Wednesday at the company's board of directors meeting in Boston.
"Jim Kelly leaves UPS well-positioned for future success," Eskew said. "He has taught all of us the importance of keeping one eye on the horizon while the other stays focused on the steering wheel."
Kelly began working for UPS in 1964 as a package delivery driver in Secaucus, N.J. He was named a senior vice president in 1988 and took over as chairman and CEO in 1997.
His successor, Eskew, began working for UPS in 1972 in the Indiana District Industrial Engineering department. In 1999, he was named executive vice president and a year later was given the additional title of vice chairman.