SAN FRANCISCO: Amazon’s head of worldwide consumer business and Jeff Bezos’s right-hand man, Jeff Wilke, will retire next year. Dave Clark, SVP of retail operations, will succeed Wilke.

In a memo to employees, titled “Hanging up the flannel,” Amazon CEO Bezos called Wilke “an incredible teacher to all of us.”

Wilke, now 53, has been with Amazon for more than two decades, joining the company in 1999 to lead global operations.

Clark’s attention to detail and tough management style has earned him the nickname “The Sniper,” due to his tendency to spot and fire workers slacking on the job.