Donald V. Fites

Donald V. Fites "retired from Caterpillar in 1999 after nine years as chairman and chief executive officer. During that time he led the corporation through reorganization, restructuring the company into business units to achieve greater return on assets, better use of resources, a flatter organization, and greater focus on customers...

"Mr. Fites’ 42-plus years with Caterpillar included 16 years in overseas management positions in South Africa, Central Europe, Japan and Brazil.

"He was promoted to corporate vice president in 1981, executive vice president in 1985, and president and chief operating officer in 1989.

"Mr. Fites now serves on the board of directors of Exxon Mobil Corp., Georgia-Pacific Corp., AT&T Wireless Services Inc., Wolverine World Wide, AK Steel Corp., and Oshkosh Truck Corp. He also serves as a member of the board of advisors of Thayer Capital Partners.

"A leading proponent of free trade, Mr. Fites is past chairman of The Business Roundtable, the U.S.-Japan Business Council, the National Foreign Trade Council and the Equipment Manufacturers' Institute. He also served as a member of several other boards and councils, including the President’s Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations under presidents Ronald Reagan, George Bush and Bill Clinton.

"Community activities include serving as chairman of The Salvation Army National Advisory Board, a trustee of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and chairman of the World Methodist Council Financial Development Committee.

"Among his many awards, Mr. Fites was named CEO of the Year in 1995 by Financial World magazine."