Phebe Novakovic: General Dynamics CEO

Phebe Novakovic received an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She took up her undergraduate degree at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. Phebe is of Serbian descent. 

She was employed at the Central Intelligence Agency then worked for the United States Department of Defense from 1997 to 2001. Then on the same year upon leaving the Department of Defense, Phebe joined General Dynamics. 

Phebe was Director of Strategic Planning and Development from March 2001 to May 2002 then became Staff Vice President of General Dynamics Corporation from May 2002 to October 2002. Phebe served as Vice President of Strategic Planning from October 2002 to June 30, 2005. She was then appointed as Senior Vice President for Planning & Development at General Dynamics Corporation and General Dynamics Land Systems Inc. from July 2005 to May 1, 2010. 

Phebe was promoted to Executive Vice President of General Dynamics Marine System, Inc. from May 1, 2010, to May 2012. She received another promotion on May 2, 2012, becoming President and Chief Operation Officer until December 2012. Then on January 1, 2013,  Phebe was elected to her current position as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of General Dynamics.

Tomita Tetsuro: East Japan Railway CEO

Tomita Tetsuro is the President and CEO of East Japan Railway. He rose through the ranks to achieve the highest executive post in the company. 

Tomita was born in 1951. In 1974 he began working for what was then the Japanese National Railway (JNR) before it was divided into regional railway companies such as East Japan. He successfully rose to the position of senior staff of management planning office in 1985 at JNR. It was to be with one of the regional companies that came out of breakup where he would soar.

Tomita started working for East Japan Railway Company in April 1987. His first position was as manager of the personnel section in the general affairs division of the Tokyo operations headquarters. Tomita was appointed manager of the station operation division the following year. He moved to corporate planning in February 1989. He has since become an expert in this area, as manager of management administration. He was in this position for almost six years. 

He was appointed manager of the personnel division in 1994 then in June 1998 Tomita became general manager of lifestyle business development. He had been promoted by June 2000 to director and general manager of the management administration department. Tomita was appointed executive director and deputy director general of corporate planning in June 2003. In addition to his existing role he was given the responsibility of being general manager of the IT business department the following year. 

In June 2008 he was promoted to executive vice president of corporate planning. Then on April 1, 2012, he was appointed president and CEO. 

As CEO one of Tomita’s initial tasks was to continue the recovery work in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami which struck Japan in 2011. He has been actively keeping East Japan Railway focused on 2020 Vision the firm’s plan for the future. Since becoming CEO Tomita has quickly made his mark in the company. 

Liang Yu: China Vanke General Manager & President

Liang Yu: China Vanke General Manager & President

Liang Yu earned a Bachelor’s Degree in International Economic Studies from Peking University in 1988. Liang also earned a Master’s Degree from Peking University and in 1997 earned a Master’s Degree from the Economics Studies Department of Beijing University. 

Liang joined Vanke in 1990. Since 1993 he has been General Manager of Vanke Financial Consultancy Company Limited. Since 2001 Liang has been the General Manager of China Vanke Co. Ltd. and has serves as its President. 

China Vanke is the largest residential real estate developer in the People’s Republic of China. It does business in developing, managing, and selling properties throughout over 60 mainland Chinese cities in the Pearl River Delta, Yangtze River Delta and Bohai-Rim Region, with provisions of investment, trading, consultancy services and e-business. Vanke expanded into Hong Kong, the United States and Singapore beginning 2012. 

The company is headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong province. In 1991 it was listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, the second company to be listed in the said stock exchange after Shenzhen Development Bank. 

Thomas Fanning: Southern Company CEO

Thomas Fanning holds Bachelor’s degree and Master’s degree in Industrial Management from Georgia Institute of Technology. Thomas has also taken executive education programs at the International Institute of Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland, Harvard University School of Business and the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business. 

He joined Southern Company as a Financial Analyst in 1980. Since joining the company Thomas has held various executive roles in a number of Southern Company subsidiaries, such as Chief Financial Officer of Mississippi Power  Company since June 12, 1999. Thomas was the Chief Information Officer and Senior Vice President of Strategy for the parent company and held other leadership roles at Southern Company Services. 

He has served as the Chief Financial Officer of Southern Company from April 2003 to January 2008 and its Treasurer from April 2003 to May 2007. He served as the Chief Executive Officer and President of Southern Power Company. Thomas served as the  President and Chief Executive Officer of Gulf Power from May 2002 to April 2003. 

Since February 1, 2008, he served as Chief Operating Officer of Southern Company.  Since August 1, 2010, he became President and added the titles of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Southern Company since December 1, 2010. 

Thomas has been director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta since February 27, 2012, and has been the Chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta since November 2014.

What’s unique with Southern Company is it operates in the South where energy markets are still regulated and utilities still integrated, providing generation, transmission and distribution. This environment make is easier for Southern to spend billions on dollars on all forms of generation, including nuclear, coal and solar, than utilities in deregulated markets, and do so with little or no  competition. 

His job though it not easy specially when you are dealing in billions of dollars and technologies such as solar energy systems posing a threat to traditional energy distribution. He has to think far ahead with the investments the company makes given the evolving energy environment. 

Omar Ishrak: Medtronics Chairman & CEO

Omar Ishrak grew up in Bangladesh. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree and PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of London, King’s College. 

Omar had 13 years of technology development and business management experience, holding leadership positions at Diasonic/Vingmed, and various product development and engineering positions at Philips Ultrasound, in the early part of his career. 

He spent 16 years at General Electric and his most recent position was as President and CEO of GE Healthcare Systems, a $12 billion division of GE Healthcare, with a broad portfolio of diagnostic, imaging, patient monitoring and life support systems. 

Omar then joined Medtronics and has been the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since June 2011. Since joining he has focused the company on three core strategies of Therapy Innovations, Economic Value and Globalization. Medtronics is a world leading medical technology company, with more than $27 billion in annual revenue, and operations spanning over 160 countries. 

In 2014, Omar lead the acquisition of Covidien, a $10 billion global manufacturer of surgical products and supplies. The acquisition of Covidien was the largest medical technology acquisition in the history of the industry. 

Kosei Shindo: NSSMC President

Kosei Shindo is the President and Representative Director of Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation (NSSMC). Kosei has served in this position since April 1, 2014. Prior to that he was an Executive Vice President of NSSMC from October 2012 to April 1, 2014. Kosei served as General Manager of Corporate Planning Division of Nippon Steel Corp. He served as Statutory Auditor of Nippon Coke & Engineering Company Limited (also known as Mitsui Mining Co. Ltd.).

MSSMC was born out of a merger and before its merger, Kosei had long experience in general affairs and management planning at Nippon Steel. He was central in forging a three-way partnership with Sumitomo Metal and Kobe Steel that started in 2001. Kosei was given the responsibility with integrating steelmaking operations of Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal after the merger.

Kosei now leads one of the largest  companies in the world. NSSMC was formed in October 2012 by the merger of Nippon Steel Corporation and Sumitomo Metal Industries, Ltd.It is a world leading integrated steel producer. NSSMC is a holding company for five businesses: steel making, engineering, chemicals, new materials and system solutions. 

NSSMC produces a broad array of value-added steel products in over 15 countries as well as at 16 steelworks in Japan. The conglomerate emphasizes three business fields as key strategic areas: high-grade steel products for automobiles, resources and energy, and civil engineering, construction, and railways. MSSMC conducts research and development at three major research centers, and six laboratories at steelworks, all in Japan. It employs approximately 83,000 people and posted ¥5,516,180 million in net sales and ¥361,097  million in ordinary profit with is crude steel production of 48.16 million tons on a consolidated basis for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2014. 

In line with its corporate philosophy, NSSMC is working at building up a dynamic NSSMC Group. The conglomerate that Kosei leads is seeking to ensure management efficiency, soundness and transparency, and enhance its corporate governance with the ultimate aim of achieving sustainable improvement in corporate value and being trusted by society. 

Albert Monaco: Enbridge President & CEO

Albert “Al” Monaco is a holder of a Certified Management  Accountant designation and is a member of the Society of Management Accountants of Alberta. Albert obtained a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Finance from the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary.

Al has more than 30 years experience in the energy industry . This includes the upstream oil and gas exploration, development and pipeline businesses. Al joined Enbridge in 1995 and has held various positions including Executive Vice President, Major Projects & Green Energy, and as President, Enbridge Gas Distribution.

He was President, Gas Pipelines, Green Energy & International with responsibility for the growth and operations of Enbridge’s gas pipelines, including the Gas Gathering & Processing operations in the United States, the Gulf Coast Offshore assets of Enbridge, and the firm’s investments in Alliance, Vector and Aux Sable, as well as Enbridge’s international business development and investment activities and Green Energy. 

Al was appointed President of Enbridge Inc., in February 2012 and became President and Chief Executive Officer on October 1, 2012. He also is also a board of director. 

Enbridge is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It has been in business for over 65 years, employing over 11,000 people, primarily in Canada and the United States. 

Ivan Menezes: Diageo CEO

Ivan Manuel Menezes was born in July 1959, in Pune, India. He comes from a family with highly accomplished members. His father, Manuel Menezes was the chairman of the Indian Railway Board and his brother Victor Menezes was the former chairman and CEO of Citibank. 

Ivan holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from St. Stephen’s College in Delhi, India. He earned a Post Graduate Diploma from the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad. Ivan also holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. 

He started his career in 1981 with Nestle, India. Ivan held positions in various sales, marketing and strategy roles with Nestle in Asia, Booz-Allen & Hamilton Inc. in North America and Whirlpool in Europe. Ivan held senior marketing positions with Whirlpool Corporation in Europe and was a Principal at Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc. both in Chicago and London. 

Since 1997, Ivan held senior management roles of increasing importance at Diageo North America and  played a leadership role in streamlining the business process of Diageo North America while focusing on marketplace execution. 

He has served as Managing Director and President of Ventures Markets of Guinness United Distillers & Vintners. Ivan also served as Global Marketing Director of UDV in the United Kingdom since September 1998 and as Group Integrator Director of Diageo PLC since May 1997. 

In July 2000, Ivan was appointed President of  Diageo, Venture Markets and in July 2002, he became the Chief Operating Officer of Diageo North America. In January 2004, Ivan was promoted to Chief Executive Officer and President of North America at Diageo PLC. 

He was appointed Chief Operating Office of Diageo PLC in March 1, 2012, and held the position until July 1, 2013, upon which Ivan was named the Chief Executive Officer of Diageo PLC. 

Diageo PLC is a worldwide leader in alcoholic beverages with an excellent portfolio of brands in spirits, beer, and wine categories. Some of the brands include J&B, Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, and Smirnoff.

Andrew Penn: Telstra CEO

While a good number of CEO rise from the bottom of the corporate ladder in one company, others like Andrew Penn made their mark in another company before being hired to a new company which they will eventually lead. 

Andrew Penn was born on January 1, 1964, in the United Kingdom.  Andrew earned an MBA from Kingston University and a FFCA from the Advanced Management Program of Harvard Business School. He moved to Australia in 1992. 

From  1990 to 2011, Andrew worked for National Mutual which later merged with AXA Asia Pacific. While at AXA he held a number of positions. Andrew was Chief Executive for Asia and spent time based in Australia, Hong Kong, Thailand and Indonesia. Richard was Group Chief Financial Officer, as well as Chief Executive Officer for Australia and New Zealand. He was  Group Chief Executive of AXA from 2006 to 2011. 

Richard joined Telstra in March 2012 as Chief Financial Officer and in May 2014, Group Executive International was added to his responsibilities. He was promoted to CEO on May 1, 2015, following the retirement of David Thodey who hired him.