Terry Leahy - Europe's Most Admired Leader

Leahy was born on February 28, 1956, in Liverpool. He studied in St. Edwards College at Liverpool and earned a management science degree at the University of Manchester's Institute of Science and Technology. During his school holidays, Leahy worked with Tesco, stacking shelves. He joined Tesco as a marketing executive in 1979. During that time, MacLaurin wanted Tesco to overtake Sainsbury's as Britain's biggest supermarket chain. MacLaurin identified Leahy as one of the prospective candidates, who could help him realize his dream. Leahy was promoted as marketing manager in 1981 and from 1984 to 1986 he held the position of marketing director for Tesco Stores Limited and was appointed commercial director of fresh foods in 1986... 

In April 2005, Tesco announced revenues of over £37 billion and a net profit of £1.37 billion for the fiscal 2004-05. Though Tesco's financial performance under Leahy had been outstanding, he was criticized on several counts, especially for the company's HR policies. The average wages paid by Tesco were among the lowest in the retailing industry in the UK. The salaries were paid on an hourly basis and the time taken off for tea breaks was not considered while calculating the total working hours. Tesco's staff were not given any sick pay for the first three days they were off...