Clarence otis jr. biography
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He became CFO in 1999, took over one of the company’s newest units, Smokey Bones, three years later and was named CEO in 2004, succeeding a longtime Darden chief who was also a member of the Red Lobster founding team, Joe R. Lee.
Otis particularly prides himself on Darden’s reputation as an employer. His daughter Allison is a junior at Stanford, majoring in communication.
Information is provided 'as-is' and solely for informational purposes, not for trading purposes or advice, and is delayed. “Clarence really is the smartest guy I have met in person,” says Shropshire, now a professor of legal studies and business ethics at Wharton.
With 185,000 employees at 2,000 outlets and annual sales of $8 billion, the Orlando-based corporation today ranks as the largest full-service restaurant operating company in the world.
Otis never imagined he would be marketing endless shrimp platters, let alone be one of six African-Americans currently chairing or directing a Fortune 500 company.
“You’ve got to modify the business to make it accessible to guests who don’t have the kind of purchasing power that they had. As a bonus to opt-ing into our email newsletters, you will also get a free subscription to the Liberty Through Wealth e-newsletter. Then in 1991 he went to Chemical Bank, where he played a key role in turning around its struggling public finance division.
When Otis was recruited by Darden for the post of treasurer in 1995, he saw it as an opportunity to advance in senior management at an interesting time, while the organization was spinning off from its parent company, General Mills.
We try to innovate on the menu side, to develop promotional offers that are compelling and exciting while being lower priced.”
As for the frequent Olive Garden jokes by Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien, Otis says, “That simply tells me how out of touch they are with the overwhelming majority of Americans.” He points out that 30 percent of the guests at his mass-market brands, Red Lobster and Olive Garden, have household incomes above $100,000—hardly a lowbrow crowd.
Clarence Otis Jr. likes to know what’s cooking. InsiderTrades.com does not provide financial advice and does not issue recommendations or offers to buy stock or sell any security. “Our landlord, Mr. Perez, had his store burned just down the street,” he recalls in a phone interview from his glass-fronted headquarters.
“I remember once I casually asked him about something in a microeconomics textbook and he immediately began rattling off insights about it.” At the same time, Shropshire recalls, “He had the most infectious laugh. You can opt out at any time. 345 N Reid Place, Suite 620, Sioux Falls, SD 57103. After the smoke cleared, federal funding poured into his neighborhood, along with a small army of community volunteers and educators determined to make a difference.
“I remember the National Guard, the military presence.”
Fortunately for Otis and his three siblings, the riots had a silver lining. Just climbing out of his South Central Los Angeles neighborhood was an achievement. And he maintains that Darden’s higher-end restaurants—Eddie V’s and The Capital Grille—would be worthy of anyone’s special occasion.
When he’s not traveling on business, about half the year, Otis spends time with his wife of 30 years, Jacqueline Bradley, and their three grown children.
They expected their children to go further, regardless of conditions on the street.
Growing up, Otis was particularly fond of books, and by ninth grade the gifted youngster had read almost every novel and biography in the Watts public library. He correctly predicted that its “casual dining” market niche—high-volume sit-down restaurants a cut above fast-food joints—would be growing rapidly in the years ahead, and he wanted a bite of the action.
Over the next decade, Otis and his team acquired building sites and financed new restaurants all over the country, preferring to own rather than franchise.
So at least twice a week—whether he’s on the road or at home in Florida—the genial 56-year-old executive sits down for a business lunch, or dinner with his wife, at one of his company’s ubiquitous chain restaurants: Red Lobster, Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Bahama Breeze, Seasons 52, The Capital Grille, Eddie V’s, or Yard House.
Late-night comics and foodies may joke about the mass-market cuisine, but that hardly matters to Otis, JD ’80.
Known as a purpose-driven and values-based leader, with Darden being recognized by Fortune magazine for four consecutive years during his tenure as one of its 100 Best Companies to Work For. Named one of the most influential directors in the board room by the National Association of Corporate Directors in 2019.
In 2013, Darden was named to Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list for the third year in a row.