President and Chief Executive Officer Safety-Kleen Corp. Current: Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Safety-Kleen Corp. – Elgin, Illinois
Donald W. Brinckman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Safety-Kleen Corp. since 1968, has guided the company’s growth from initial year revenues approximating $100,000 to 1987 revenues of over $333 million. Mr. Brinckman holds a B.S. degree in marketing and an M.B.A. from Northwestern University and received an honorary doctorate from Judson College. Early in his business career, he was employed by Crane Company and Outboard Marine Corporation, primarily in marketing research. In 1960, he joined CR Industries, Elgin, Illinois, as Market Research Manager. He became Manager of Planning and Distribution in 1962 and was promoted to Vice President of the Replacement Division in 1966. He recommended that CR Industries purchase Safety-Kleen in 1968. Mr. Brinckman became President of Safety-Kleen, retaining his position as Vice President of the parent company until Safety-Kleen’s spin-off from CR in 1974. Mr. Brinckman is a founding member of the American Business Conference, a coalition of emerging growth companies. In 1984, he and the company were selected to receive the first annual “Excellence in Corporate Growth Award” by the Chicago Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth. He was inducted into the Illinois Business Hall of Fame in September of 1986. “I believe that within our American system of free enterprise, almost anything is possible.”
