Masonite Names Howard C. Heckes President and Chief Executive Officer
Operational and Commercial Expert with Proven Record Driving Growth
and Efficiency at Global Organizations
TAMPA, Fla.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Masonite International Corporation (“Masonite” or “the Company”) (NYSE:
DOOR) today announced that Howard C. Heckes has been named President and
Chief Executive Officer, effective June 3, 2019. He will also join
Masonite’s Board of Directors at that time. Mr. Heckes succeeds Fred
Lynch, who previously announced his intention to retire.
Heckes is a seasoned executive who brings more than three decades of
leadership, operational, sales and marketing expertise to Masonite. Mr.
Heckes currently serves as CEO of Energy Management Collaborative, a
privately held company providing LED lighting and controls and IoT
conversion systems and service solutions. Previously, Mr. Heckes spent
nine years in a variety of senior operations roles at Valspar
Corporation, most recently overseeing Valspar’s Industrial Coatings
portfolio, which included four global operating divisions with
approximately $2.5 billion in revenue, 40 manufacturing facilities, and
5,100 employees in 38 countries. Mr. Heckes also held various leadership
roles at Newell Rubbermaid, including President of Sanford Brands,
President of Graco Children’s Products and President of Goody Products,
in which he demonstrated significant ability to drive organic top line
growth and implement cost and operational discipline to expand margins.
Robert J. Byrne, Chairman of the Masonite Board, said, “Today’s
announcement is the culmination of a comprehensive search process that
included numerous strong internal and external candidates. We are
thrilled to welcome Howard to the Masonite team. Howard has a
distinguished, proven track record of developing powerful insights,
acting upon them decisively, and delivering strong results. The Board is
confident that he is ideally suited to lead Masonite forward, building
on the transformational change that Fred Lynch executed over his nearly
13-year tenure. With his motivational and inspirational leadership
style, Howard will continue our unwavering commitment to delivering
outstanding value to our customers and shareholders.”
Mr. Heckes said, “I have developed a great admiration for Masonite’s
progress under Fred Lynch’s leadership. The core values of the company
are consistent with my own: a commitment to innovation, operational
excellence and delivering results. I am truly excited to continue to
leverage the Company’s momentum and competitive position to maximize the
significant value inherent in Masonite. I look forward to working with
the Board, management team and the thousands of Masonite employees
around the world to deliver outstanding products and superior service to
our customers while enhancing shareholder value.”
Mr. Lynch said, “It has been an honor to serve as Masonite’s President
and CEO for more than a decade and to help our organization continuously
deliver on its vision to be the best provider of building products in
the eyes of our customers, employees, shareholders, suppliers and
communities. I’m fortunate to have been a part of such a talented,
dedicated team that is committed to revolutionizing the door industry
and helping people walk through walls. I am confident in the Company’s
prospects for growth and value creation under Howard’s leadership. I
know that his appreciation for Masonite’s purposeful culture, people and
customers make him a great choice to serve as the company’s next leader.”
About Howard C. Heckes
Howard Heckes, 54, has a successful history of driving growth and margin
improvement at the companies he has led. Mr. Heckes currently serves as
Chief Executive Officer of Energy Management Collaborative, a privately
held company providing LED lighting and controls and IoT conversion
systems and service solutions based in Plymouth, Minnesota. In this role
he implemented efficient and scalable business systems and processes to
support the Company’s rapid organic growth. Prior to that, Howard spent
nine years at Valspar, from 2008 to 2017, where he served as Executive
Vice-President and President of Global Coatings, with responsibility for
M&A strategy and delivering financial objectives for the entire
Industrial Coatings portfolio. He also previously served as Valspar’s
Senior Vice President, Global Consumer, with responsibility for leading
Valspar’s Global Consumer Products portfolio, which included major
branded consumer paint companies across the U.S., China, Europe,
Australia and New Zealand. Prior to joining Valspar, Mr. Heckes held
various leadership roles at Newell Rubbermaid, including President of
Sanford Brands, President of Graco Children’s Products and President of
Goody Products.
Mr. Heckes holds a Master’s degree in industrial engineering from the
University of Iowa and a Bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering
from Iowa State University.
About Masonite
Masonite International Corporation is a leading global designer and
manufacturer of interior and exterior doors for the residential new
construction; the residential repair, renovation and remodeling; and the
non-residential building construction markets. Since 1925, Masonite has
provided its customers with innovative products and superior service at
compelling values. Masonite currently serves approximately 9,000
customers in 64 countries. Additional information about Masonite can be
found at www.masonite.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking information and other
forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable Canadian
and/or U.S. securities laws, including our discussion of Mr. Heckes’
appointment and future service as our President and Chief Executive
Officer, and his impact on our prospects. When used in this press
release, such forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of
such words as “plans”, “intends”, “may,” “might,” “could,” “will,”
“would,” “should,” “expect,” “believes,” “outlook,” “predict,”
“forecast,” “objective,” “remain,” “anticipate,” “estimate,”
“potential,” “continue,” “plan,” “project,” “targeting,” or the negative
of these terms or other similar terminology. Forward-looking statements
involve significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors that may cause the actual events to be materially different from
any future plans, objectives or achievements expressed or implied by
such forward-looking statements. As a result, such forward-looking
statements should not be read as guarantees of future events, and should
not be unduly relied upon. Factors that could cause actual events to
differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking
statements include, but are not limited to, Mr. Heckes’ success in
implementing our business strategy and otherwise serving as our
President and Chief Executive Officer.
Contacts
Investor Contacts:
Joanne Freiberger, CPA, CTP, IRC
VP,
TREASURER
jfreiberger@masonite.com
o
// 813.739.1808
Farand Pawlak, CPA
DIRECTOR INVESTOR RELATIONS
fpawlak@masonite.com
o
// 813.371.5839
Media Contacts:
Michael Freitag, Adam Pollack or Sophie Throsby
Joele
Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher
212.355.4449
