Jeff Wilke: net worth, age, wife, career, profile, why did he leave Amazon?
Jeff Wilke has spent over two decades with one of the most successful online retail stores, Amazon, but he has recently made a career change, which he announced in August 2020. This successful businessman will be moving over to Scale AI, valued at over $7.3 billion, as a CEO adviser. Find out more on why Wilke left Amazon, what contributions he made to the company, and whether Jeff Benzo will follow his lead.
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Read up more on how exactly Wilke became so successful in the retail industry and what Scale AI entails. Find out who will be his replacement at Amazon and his plans for the future of America.
Jeff Wilke's Profile and bio
- Full name: Jeffrey Wilke
- Nickname: Jeff
- Gender: Male
- Place of birth: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Date of birth: 1968
- Jeff Wilke's age: 53 in 2021
- Current residence: Seattle and Southern California
- Nationality: American
- Sexuality: Straight
- Jeff Wilke's wife: Liesl D Wilke
- Children: two daughters
- Eye colour: Brown
- Hair colour: Brown
- Jeff Wilke's education: Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Princeton University
- Occupation: Businessman
- Jeff Wilke's salary: $210,725
- Net worth: $201 Million in December 2020
- Jeff Wilke's Linkedin: Jeff Wilke
- Instagram: @jeffwilke
- Facebook: @jeffawilke
- Twitter: @jeffawilke
Source: Getty Images
Jeff Wilke's family
This businessman has managed to keep his personal details out of the spotlight, and it is unclear who his parents are and if he has any siblings. However, we know that Wilke is married to Liesl Dale, who is an author and artist. Both Leisl and Wilke attended Princeton University, so one could speculate that this is where they met. Liesl has received several awards for her books, including The Writer's Digest Self-Published Novel Award in 2015 for her novel Circle of Three.
The couple has two daughters together whose names he has kept private and a black Labrador named Dakota.
Source: Getty Images
Jeff Wilke's Amazon career
What did Jeff Wilke do before Amazon? Prior to joining the online retail company, he worked at Allied Signal (currently known as Honeywell) as vice president and general manager of pharmaceutical chemicals and plant operations. He already had a degree in chemical engineering from Princeton under his belt and an MBA from MIT.
He was inspired by Jeff Benzo's shareholder letter released in 1997 and moved over to Amazon in September 1999.
“I loved the focus on long-term free cash flow instead of the quarter-to-quarter financial targets which drive most public companies. And I loved the idea that success at Amazon would likely depend on both computer science and operational excellence.”
Here are the titles bestowed onto Wilke throughout his Amazon career:
- CEO Worldwide Consumer: April 2016- August 2021
- Senior Vice President in Consumer business: February 2012- April 2016
- Senior Vice President in North American Detail: January 2007- February 2012
- Senior Vice President in Worldwide Operations: January 2002 -December 2006
- Vice President and General Manager in Operations: September 1999- December 2001
Why did Jeff Wilke leave Amazon?
The successful businessman feels that he can contribute on a greater level towards helping the community and has decided to step down as Amazon's CEO. Dave Clark, the current Senior Vice President of Retail Operations, will be taking on his position.
“Time for me to take time to explore personal interests that have taken a back seat for over two decades"
The plan is to prioritise local manufacturing within the US so as not to rely on imports and create jobs and improve American citizens' skills. Wilke is proud of the fact that Amazon has been able to make so many job opportunities within their company, and now he wishes to continue that trend within the manufacturing industry.
Jeff Wilke's Scale AI
The San Francisco-based firm was founded in 2016 and assists businesses in developing and managing Artificial Intelligence and machine learning technologies. They assist companies such as Toyota, Samsung, the DoD, PayPal, and Etsy. Wilke's position within Scale AI will be an adviser to the CEO, Alexandre Wang, who stated:
“We’re proud to be trusted by the world’s most ambitious AI teams to build the data foundation that will set their organizations up for success for decades to come.”
Is Jeff Bezos retiring from Amazon?
Currently, the richest man alive today, Jeff Bezos, has retired as Amazon's CEO on 5 July 2021 with $197 billion in his pocket. He plans on focusing on space exploration while Andy Jassy, the former CEO of Web Services, took the reigns over. It was rumoured that Jeff Wilke was due to take over the position before he announced his resignation in 2021.
Source: Getty Images
Jeff Wilke has made a considerable impact on the rate of growth of Amazon over the past couple of decades, and he now intends to grow many communities within the United States. His main goal is to eradicate outsourcing labour and manufacturing by improving the factory systems and creating a skilled labour force. The potential job creations will make a significant impact on the lives of Americans and the economy overall.
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Briefly.co.za provides you with a list of 20 self-made millionaires as well as their financial strategies, including names such as Larry Ellison, Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, to name but a few.
Source: Briefly News
