Ferro Corporation has announced corporate appointments and management changes to facilitate the Company’s ongoing growth.
Benjamin Schlater, who has served as Ferro’s Vice President, Corporate Development and Strategy since September 2015, has been named Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, succeeding Jeffrey Rutherford, who stepped down from the position on September 1. James Barna, Ferro’s Corporate Controller, has been appointed to the additional role of Chief Accounting Officer of the Company. Lori Saviers, who was Ferro’s Chief Procurement Officer, has been named Vice President, Global Sourcing and Supply Chain. In addition, Sandy Frydryk has been named Director, Corporate Development and Integration.
Mr. Rutherford is expected to remain with the Company as an advisor to Mr. Schlater through the end of 2016 to ensure a smooth transition of responsibilities.
“The management changes announced today reflect the progress we have made executing our value creation strategy and our intensified focus in the current phase on growth,” said Peter T. Thomas, Chairman, President & Chief Executive Officer of Ferro. “Ben has the right combination of financial, strategic and acquisitions experience to accelerate our success. He already has had a significant impact on the business as our corporate development lead, and I’m excited to work with him in his new role.”
Mr. Thomas continued, “I want to thank Jeff Rutherford for his many contributions to Ferro during the business turnaround and portfolio rationalization phases of our strategy. Jeff was key to our efforts to aggressively reduce the cost structure of the Company. We’re grateful to Jeff for his leadership and we look forward to his continued support as we transition to a new CFO.”
Mr. Thomas further commented, “Jim Barna has been a highly effective leader of our global accounting operations. Shifting the chief accounting officer responsibilities from the CFO to Jim reflects our recognition of Jim’s skill and experience, and it will allow Ben to focus more intensely on our growth priorities.” Mr. Thomas added, “Lori Saviers already has made significant contributions to our earnings growth by driving efficiencies and making other improvements in Ferro’s procurement function. We expect she will drive additional efficiencies as we combine our procurement and supply chain operations under her leadership.
“We are focused, now more than ever, on growth. Along with the changes we announced today, our operating vice presidents – Matthias Bell, Dieter Binder, Julio Garcia, and Barry Misquitta – together with our external advisors, have been charged with identifying and assessing acquisition targets. They and their teams will work closely with Sandy Frydryk to execute the robust processes we have established to integrate acquired businesses into Ferro. In addition, our operating vice presidents have technical directors and commercial teams driving organic growth through development of high-value product solutions and new product applications utilizing our color and glass science, product formulation and surface application technology expertise.”
“Our priority is growth and leadership as a global functional coatings and color solutions provider, and we are structuring the organization to seize the exciting opportunities before us,” Mr. Thomas said. “Our teams understand and are invested in our value creation strategy, and we are in an excellent position to achieve our value creation targets.”
Mr. Schlater joined Ferro in September 2015. He has nearly 20 years of corporate finance experience, with extensive background in treasury, strategic planning, mergers, acquisitions and divestitures and implementing strategies and financial objectives to support growth for multi-billion-dollar global companies. His experience includes serving as treasurer and head of corporate development, strategic and financial planning, and risk management at Veyance Technologies, a $2 billion global manufacturing company then owned by The Carlyle Group. Prior to Veyance, he was a managing director at FTI Consulting, focused on financial and strategic advisory services for large multinational companies. Prior to that, he was a manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers in its corporate finance practice. Mr. Schlater earned his Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and Business Law from Ohio University and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Mr. Barna joined the Company in December 2011 as Director, External Reporting, and has served as Corporate Controller since June 2012. Prior to joining Ferro, Mr. Barna spent nine years at PriceWaterhouseCoopers, where he worked with a number of public and private companies providing accounting, transaction advisory and assurance services. He is a CPA and holds an MBA and a Bachelor of Science degree in Accountancy from John Carroll University.
Ms. Saviers joined Ferro in June 2015 as Chief Procurement Officer. Prior to joining the Company, she was Global Sourcing Director for the Performance Chemicals Division at OMNOVA Solutions. Prior to OMNOVA, she held senior procurement, marketing, and sales management positions with Associated British Foods, Witco Corporation, and Engelhard. She holds an MBA from Case Western Reserve University and a Bachelor of Science in Operations Management from the University of Akron.
Ms. Frydryk joined Ferro in 1997. She has held positions of increasing responsibility in manufacturing, EHS, project management, and international business management, including working for Ferro in China. She served as Regional Commercial Director in North America for the Pigments, Powders and Oxides and the Performance Colors and Glass businesses and Global Strategy Director for the Pigments, Powders and Oxide portfolio before taking the role of Director, Business Development, in the Company’s Corporate Development group in 2015. Ms. Frydryk holds an MBA from Kent State University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Mount Union College.