Milestone Anniversary for Executive Chairman of the Board

Greg Henslee at his desk in the summer of 1989.

At the time, O’Reilly was a regional company with about 50 stores, operating in southwest and central Missouri, northern Arkansas, and southeast Oklahoma. As the company grew, Greg’s responsibilities increased as well. One of his first promotions was to district manager. “There were just a handful of us, and we met monthly,” Greg remembers. “We could all fit around one table.” Forty years later, the company has more than 650 district managers.

Through the years, Greg held several positions that were “firsts” for the company, including Computer Operations manager, which meant a move into the corporate office.

“I clearly remember the anxiety I felt the first day to that new job,” he said. “I’d always worked in the field, and my focus was making sure we had great team members helping our customers and that our stores provided the best customer service in the business. I quickly learned everyone in the corporate office was focused on the same thing. I’ll never forget the end of that first day and the feeling of true teamwork I felt.” 

Greg continued to move up the ranks in the company, working hard and contributing wherever he was needed. He eventually became the first non-O’Reilly family member to be named CEO.

His predecessor, David O’Reilly, who serves as executive vice chairman of the board, said Greg has been an exemplary role model for team members. “I personally have had the incredible satisfaction of knowing that when Greg replaced me as Chief Executive Officer, Team O’Reilly would be in the hands of a true leader who would provide the skill, integrity, and knowledge we all now know has been the case.”

One of Greg’s biggest challenges as CEO was the acquisition of CSK Auto Corporation in 2008, a decision that moved O’Reilly into the western United States and nearly doubled the size of the company. While price and logistics of a buyout were big decisions, Greg was most concerned with something else. 

“I wondered how would we go about integrating CSK with O’Reilly in a way that ensured the culture that was so key to our success, was strongly established in these stores and distribution centers. It was simply amazing how effectively every part of our company came together to develop an integration plan, with our culture at the core. We changed inventories, put all the stores on our computer systems, and hundreds of other initiatives. It clearly took our company to the next level, establishing O’Reilly as a nationwide company. Thanks to all of our team members who worked so hard to complete these conversions and establish our culture, the merger of the two companies has been an absolutely incredible success from every perspective.” 

Ted Wise, former O’Reilly chief operating officer and co-president, said, “Greg is both perceptive and objective in making well-thought-out business decisions. Most importantly, he promotes the value of our culture and believes every member of Team O’Reilly is responsible for our continued growth and success.”

Now, Greg serves as executive chairman of the board. As he looks back on 40 years at O’Reilly, it isn’t just the company’s success he sees. 

“One of the most gratifying parts of my career has been watching the team members around me grow and take on more responsibility as they’re promoted with the growth of our company. Over the years, I’ve seen thousands of team members who started out in an entry-level position be promoted to positions of additional responsibility.  This promote-from within-philosophy, combined with the culture the O’Reilly family established when the company was small, are the keys to our past success and will be the keys to our continued growth and future success.” 

 His advice for others is simple: join Team O’Reilly. “If you’re looking for a career that rewards commitment, hard work, and a dedication to taking care of our customers, no matter what position you hold, look no further than O’Reilly Auto Parts. Future opportunities await you.”