Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company Leadership Forum

October 20, 2011

Anthony J. Alexander, president and chief executive officer of FirstEnergy Corporation, was the 2011 Goodyear Executive Leadership Forum keynote speaker. The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company established the Executive Leadership Forum in 1991 through The University of Akron College of Business Administration to enable students, faculty, and the community to interact with individuals of national and international stature. The title of his presentation was, “Lessons in Leadership: Through Adversity, Change and Growth.”

Alexander began his career in 1972 in the Tax Department of Ohio Edison—which merged in 1997 with Centerior Energy to form FirstEnergy. He joined Ohio Edison’s Legal Department as an attorney in 1976, and worked his way up the corporate ladder. He was elected executive vice president and general counsel of FirstEnergy in 1997 and then president in 2000. Alexander was elected president and chief operating officer in 2001 and to his current position in January 2004.

An alumnus of The University of Akron, Alexander is also a recipient of the Dr. Frank L. Simonetti Distinguished Business Alumni Award from The University of Akron.

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History

On September 13, 1991, then Goodyear Chairman, Stanley C. Gault, announced the establishment of The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company Executive Leadership Forum at the dedication of new facilities for the College of Business Administration.

“The series will feature successful, articulate leaders; speakers who are living proof that the free enterprise system is very much alive and well in this nation,” Gault said. “This historic link between the CBA and Goodyear is symbolic of each organization’s desire to better shape the community and world in which we operate,” said then CBA dean, Dr. Russell J. Petersen.

Since its creation, the lecture series has featured individuals with special knowledge and insight who help shape the business, political and social arenas. Funded through a grant from Goodyear, the lectures are open to UA faculty and students, as well as the general public.

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, founded in 1898, is one of the world’s largest tire companies and one of the world’s largest operators of commercial truck service and retreading centers. It manufactures its products in more than 53 facilities in 22 countries, with marketing operations in almost every country in the world. In the area of education, Goodyear maintains a proactive position, with involvements ranging from classroom participation to state-wide advisory capacities.