FirstEnergy Announces Management Changes With Responsibility For Innovation, Products, Marketing
May 19,2020
FirstEnergy Corp. today announced a series of management changes that, "supports the company's succession planning process, broadens the experience of key executives, and further positions the company for long-term, customer-focused growth."
Steven E. Strah has been elected by the Board of Directors to serve as president, FirstEnergy Corp. Strah will continue reporting to Charles E. Jones, who has been FirstEnergy's president, chief executive officer and member of the board since 2015. Jones will continue to serve as CEO and a member of the board.
As president, Strah will oversee FirstEnergy Utilities; Corporate Services and Information Technology; Finance; Product Development, Marketing and Branding; External Affairs; Rates and Regulatory Affairs; and Strategy. Strah began his career with The Illuminating Company in 1984 and served in a variety of utility leadership roles including regional president of Ohio Edison; vice president, Distribution Support; and senior vice president, FirstEnergy Utilities. He was elected senior vice president and chief financial officer in 2018.
Robert P. Reffner has been elected senior vice president and chief legal officer, reporting to Jones. Reffner will continue to lead the Corporate, Legal, Information & Compliance and Real Estate departments and will now oversee Risk & Internal Auditing. He will also oversee efforts to develop the Innovation Center, a new venture that will apply data analytics, technologies and creative problem-solving to accelerate innovation within FirstEnergy. Reffner joined FirstEnergy in 2007 and was elected senior vice president and general counsel in 2018.
K. Jon Taylor has been elected senior vice president and chief financial officer, reporting to Strah.
Ebony L. Yeboah-Amankwah was elected vice president, general counsel and chief ethics officer, reporting to Reffner. Yeboah-Amankwah joined FirstEnergy in 2005 and was named vice president, deputy general counsel, corporate secretary and chief ethics officer in 2018.