Lexington-based Tempur Sealy International Inc. has named Scott L. Thompson as the bedding company’s new chairman, president and chief executive officer, effective immediately.
Thompson formerly led Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. as chairman, president and chief executive officer, prior to its purchase by Hertz Global Holdings Inc. in 2012. Before joining Dollar Thrifty, he worked as a consultant to private equity firms and founded the Fortune 500 company Group 1 Automotive Inc., serving as its senior executive vice president and chief financial officer. Thompson currently serves on the boards of directors for Asbury Automotive Group Inc., Houston Wire and Cable Co. and Conn’s Inc. He received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas.
“Scott is a world-class operator with a history of strategic focus and developing high-performance teams,” said Frank Doyle, Tempur Sealy’s chairman of the board, in a release on Thompson’s appointment. “We are confident that his expertise in these key areas will add significant value to Tempur Sealy.”
Thompson's appointment follows a three-month search by the Tempur Sealy board overseen by the board’s CEO search committee following the resignation in May of Tempur Sealy’s former president and CEO, Mark A. Sarvary.
As Thompson assumes his new role, Doyle will take on the role of lead director for the company, and interim CEO W. Timothy Yaggi will continue in his role as chief operating officer.