Brookdale Senior Living (NYSE: BKD) has been tapping executives from various outside industries to take on leadership roles at the company. Its new hire for Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer is Cedric T. Coco, former senior vice president of human resources for Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW).
Headquartered in Mooresville, North Carolina, Lowe’s operates a chain of retail home improvement and appliance stores throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The company is ranked 47 on the Fortune 500. Brentwood, Tennessee-based Brookdale is the largest senior living provider in the nation, with more than 1,100 locations throughout the country.
Before Lowe’s, Coco also gained two decades of experience in business leadership at Microsoft Corporation, KLA-Tencor Corporation and General Electric Company. At those companies he held leadership roles in everything from engineering and general management to business development and sales, according to a press release issued Wednesday by Brookdale.
“Cedric’s deep experience within the human resources function in companies with a distributed workforce, as well as his mix of business management and retail knowledge, will provide Brookdale with the leadership we need to improve our ability to attract, retain and develop our associates,” Andy Smith, Brookdale’s president and CEO, said in the press release. “I know that Cedric will be a strong voice for our mission-driven culture.”
Coco is replacing Gelnn O. Maul, who stepped down from his role as executive vice president and chief people officer in July.
This news follows Brookdale’s appointment of a former Walmart executive as the new chief operating officer as well as a new chief financial officer from outside of the industry. Coco’s appointment is just the latest addition to Brookdale’s C-suite since it has been reconfigured after it acquired rival Emeritus Senior Living Corp. (NYSE: ESC) in 2014.
Written by Alana Stramowski