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Cummins Inc. CEO Jennifer Rumsey will take over as the company’s board chair when Tom Linebarger retires at the end of the month, Cummins announced Wednesday.
Linebarger will retire as board chair effective July 31, and Rumsey will step into the position on Aug. 1, while still retaining her position as CEO.
Linebarger’s retirement brings to a close 31 years of involvement with the Columbus, Indiana-based manufacturer. He joined the company in 1993, and retired as CEO in August 2022. During Linebarger’s 10 years as CEO from 2012 to 2022, Cummins’ annual revenue grew from $17.3 billion to a record-setting $28.1 billion last year.
Rumsey, a Columbus native, joined Cummins in 2000 as a technical advisor. She was named president of the company in March 2021 and became CEO upon Linebarger’s retirement last year.
Fortune’s 2022 list of “The 50 Most Powerful Women” ranked Rumsey No. 45. She and Elevance CEO Gail Boudreaux were the only two leaders of Indiana-based companies to make the list.
Rumsey helped develop Cummins’ Destination Zero decarbonization strategy, and earlier this year, the company rebranded its zero-emissions business unit as Accelera by Cummins. Accelera is the part of Cummins’ business that includes alternative power sources such as hydrogen and electric.
Also in the past year, Cummins completed its acquisition of Michigan-based Meritor Inc., a leader in electric axle and brake technology.
“Jennifer has the deep technical understanding needed to lead us successfully through the decarbonization journey and a clear ability to lead and develop people. We are all confident that Jennifer will help Cummins continue to flourish,” Cummins Board Lead Director Tom Lynch said in a written statement.
Cummins has about 73,600 employees. The company reported a profit of $2.2 billion in 2022.
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A big congratulations to Ms. Rumsey. She is an extremely valued asset to Cummins. However, I must admit belonging to the old school that has difficulty with Board oversight over management when the head manager is the Board Chairman. Please explain the logic that has changed.
Tom