CSX names industry veteran James M. Foote President and CEO

CSX

The Board of Directors of CSX Corporation has named James (Jim) M. Foote as the company’s President and Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Mr. Foote was named acting CEO on December 14, 2017 after E. Hunter Harrison was placed on medical leave. Mr. Foote will also join the Company’s Board of Directors.

Mr. Foote was named Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of CSX in October 2017. Prior to joining CSX, Mr. Foote was President and Chief Executive Officer of Bright Rail Energy, a technology company formed in 2012 to design, develop and sell products that allow railroads to switch locomotives to natural gas power. Before heading Bright Rail, Mr. Foote was Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing with Canadian National Railway Company. Mr. Foote joined Canadian National in 1995 as Vice President of Investor Relations to assist the company’s privatization. He also served as Vice President of sales and marketing merchandise. Jim began his career in the railroad industry in 1972 as a labourer in the mechanical department with the Soo Line Railroad in Superior, Wisconsin. For nine years, he worked union operating positions with the Soo Line and Chicago North Western full time while earning his undergraduate and law degrees.

Speaking on his appointment, Jim Foote said, “I worked alongside Hunter for over a decade and his pioneering approach to railroading unlocked significant efficiencies and value, and we remain focused on delivering on this vision for CSX, our customers and our shareholders. The execution of Precision Scheduled Railroading is well underway, with the most critical components of the implementation completed and beginning to generate measurable operating improvement.”

Source: CSX Corporation