Kimberly-Clark Corporation
Leadership History
3 leaders · 1971 to present
Mike Hsu is the CEO of Kimberly-Clark, in the role since 2019. The first chief executive was Darwin Smith, from 1971.
| Name | Role | From | To | Years in role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Hsu | Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | 2019 | Present | 7 |
| Thomas J. Falk | Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | 2002 | 2018 | 16 |
| Darwin Smith | Former Chief Executive Officer | 1971 | 1991 | 20 |
Kimberly-Clark is one of the largest makers of diapers, tissue and personal care products in the world, with brands sold in about 175 countries. It is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, trades on Nasdaq under KMB, and employed about 36,000 people at the end of 2025. Its portfolio includes Huggies, Pull-Ups, GoodNites, Kleenex, Scott, Cottonelle, Viva, Kotex, U by Kotex, Depend, Poise and Andrex, plus Softex in Indonesia. The company is headquartered in Irving, Texas. The absolute massive American personal care juggernaut was founded in Wisconsin in 1872, completely inventing the modern tissue industry by repurposing WWI surgical bandages into Kotex and Kleenex.
Kimberly-Clark makes money by manufacturing and selling branded disposable hygiene and tissue products through retailers, e-commerce and distributors. Since 2024 it reports two segments: North America (consumer brands such as Huggies, Kleenex, Cottonelle, Scott, Depend and Poise, plus the North American professional business) and International Personal Care (diapers, feminine care and adult care outside North America). The International Family Care and Professional tissue business is reported as discontinued operations after being contributed to the Arbex joint venture with Suzano. Profit depends on pricing power, mix toward premium products, and productivity savings that offset pulp, resin and energy costs.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
2019 – Present
7 years (current)
Became CEO in January 2019 and chairman in 2020. Led the 2024 reorganization into North America and International Personal Care segments, the Powering Care strategy, the Suzano tissue joint venture, and the agreement to acquire Kenvue.
Shifted Kimberly-Clark toward premium innovation and productivity savings and is repositioning it as a broader health and wellness company.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
2002 – 2018
16 years
Falk became chief executive in 2002 and reorganised the company around personal care, consumer tissue and professional products.
He spun off the healthcare business as Halyard Health in 2014. Mike Hsu succeeded him at the start of 2019.
Former Chief Executive Officer
1971 – 1991
20 years
Sold the company's traditional coated paper mills and put the proceeds into consumer brands such as Huggies and Kleenex.
His move from commodity paper to consumer products is widely cited, including in Jim Collins's Good to Great, as the turning point in the company's history.
Kimberly-Clark faces slow volume growth in mature diaper and tissue markets, private-label competition, and pulp, resin and tariff cost swings. In Q2 2026 it cited a social media disruption in China tied to false claims about diaper quality, which independent testing refuted but which still hurt sales. The biggest near-term risk is the Kenvue acquisition: integrating a consumer health company, absorbing extra debt, winning antitrust approvals that have required period-care divestitures, and protecting a dividend record of more than 50 consecutive annual increases.
Mike Hsu has served as Chief Executive Officer of Kimberly-Clark since January 2019 and Chairman of the Board since January 2020. Hsu previously served as Chief Operating Officer and head of North American consumer products, leading major portfolio transformations.
Thomas J. Falk served as CEO of Kimberly-Clark from 2002 to 2018 (and Chairman through 2019). Over his 16-year tenure, Falk drove international expansion, accelerated the global growth of Huggies and Depend, and consistently returned billions to shareholders.
Darwin E. Smith served as CEO of Kimberly-Clark from 1971 to 1991. Profiled as the archetypal 'Level 5 Leader' in Jim Collins' bestselling book 'Good to Great', Smith famously sold the company's legacy paper mills to pivot entirely into consumer branded personal care.
In 1971, realizing traditional pulp and paper mills were capital-intensive commodity businesses, then-CEO Darwin Smith sold the historic mill in Kimberly, Wisconsin, and reinvested every dollar into building Huggies diapers, beating market leader Procter & Gamble.
Wayne R. Sanders served as CEO from 1991 to 2002 and orchestrated the historic $9.4 billion acquisition of Scott Paper Company in 1995, instantly making Kimberly-Clark the world's largest tissue and personal care manufacturer.
Nelson Urdaneta serves as Chief Financial Officer of Kimberly-Clark Corporation. Joining from Mondelēz International, Urdaneta leads global financial strategy, capital allocation, investor relations, and enterprise cost optimization programs.
Kimberly-Clark's board consists of independent corporate executives with expertise in global CPG retail, supply chain logistics, healthcare, and digital technology, maintaining separate lead independent director governance.
Mike Hsu has focused on accelerating commercial execution, expanding higher-margin personal care in emerging markets, driving sustainable fiber innovation, and maintaining Kimberly-Clark's 50+ year Dividend King shareholder distribution commitment.
Mike Hsu serves as CEO. Taking over in 2019, he was immediately forced to navigate massive global supply chain chaos and skyrocketing pulp prices during the pandemic. He aggressively executed a massive corporate restructuring, raising prices on consumer goods to protect the company's legendary profit margins and dividend payouts.
Compare executive leadership tenures and strategic transitions
Explore Kimberly-Clark
Core profile pages, founders and related research hubs for this company.