West Chester, Oh., USA - October 28, 2015, West Chester, Oh., USA - AK Steel announced that James L. Wainscott is to retire as president and CEO, effective January 1, 2016.
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Mr. Wainscott will continue to serve as Executive Chairman, President and CEO of the company until his retirement on January 1, 2016, after which he will continue to serve as Chairman of the Board of Directors in a Non-Executive capacity.
Mr. Wainscott joined AK Steel as Vice President and Treasurer in 1995. He was named Chief Financial Officer in 1997, President, CEO and a member of the Board of Directors in 2003, and Chairman of the Board of Directors in 2006.
Before joining AK Steel, Mr. Wainscott held a number of executive level positions with National Steel Corporation, and was elected Treasurer and Assistant Secretary of National Steel in 1993. In addition to his leadership of AK Steel, he serves as a member of the Board of Directors of Parker-Hannifin Corporation.
He is a former Chairman of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) and past Chair of the Steel Market Development Institute. He has received AISI’s highest honor, the Gary Memorial Medal, for his life-long contributions to the North American steel industry.
Mr. Wainscott currently serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of Xavier University, and he is a member of the Board of Directors of the United Way of Greater Cincinnati. He was the Chairman of the 2014 United Way of Greater Cincinnati Campaign.
He also serves on the Campaign Board of the Ohio Cancer Research Associates, and is a past Chair of the Good Samaritan Hospital Foundation. He has been selected to receive the 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association for Corporate Growth in Cincinnati.
He graduated Magna Cum Laude from Ball State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting, and earned a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Notre Dame.
He has received a number of prestigious awards from these educational institutions, including the President’s Medal of Distinction from Ball State, and the Distinguished Alumni Award from Notre Dame.
Related to this change, the AK Steel Board of Directors made the following appointments, effective January 1, 2016:
Roger K. Newport is appointed Chief Executive Officer and a Member of the Board of Directors.
Kirk W. Reich is appointed President and Chief Operating Officer.
Mr. Newport started his career with the company in 1985 in the accounting department. He advanced through a number of increasingly responsible finance, sales and marketing roles at the corporate headquarters and the company’s Middletown Works. He was named Controller in 2001, and Chief Accounting Officer in 2004.
He was named Vice President, Business Planning and Development in 2010, and Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer in 2012. He was named Senior Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer in 2014, and Executive Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer in 2015.
Mr. Newport is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Iron and Steel Institute and the World Steel Association, and Chairman of the Steel Market Development Institute CEO Group. He is also a member of the Board of the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber.
He serves on the Dean’s Executive Advisory Board for Xavier University’s Williams College of Business. He served as Group Chair, Special Projects for the 2014 United Way of Greater Cincinnati Campaign.
He holds a BBA degree in Accounting from the University of Cincinnati and an MBA with honors from Xavier University.
Mr. Reich began his career with the company in 1989 in the engineering department at the company’s Middletown Works. He has extensive engineering, operations and maintenance experience, having led the company’s Middletown and Mansfield plants.
He was named General Manager, Mansfield Works in 2000, General Manager, Middletown Works in 2006, Vice President, Specialty Steel Operations in 2010 and Vice President, Procurement and Supply Chain Management in 2012. He was named Senior Vice President, Manufacturing in 2014, and Executive Vice President, Manufacturing in 2015.
Mr. Reich is a member of the Board of Directors of the Atrium Medical Center Foundation. He served as Group Chair, Regional Campaigns for the 2014 United Way of Greater Cincinnati Campaign. ■