Cooper completes CEO transition

FINDLAY, Ohio—Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. has completed the transition of its president and CEO role to Bradley Hughes.

Hughes succeeds Roy Armes, who also served as chairman and retired on Aug. 31. Thomas Capo will serve as executive chairman of the Cooper board.

Armes joined Cooper in 2007 after spending nearly 30 years with Whirlpool Corp., holding leadership positions throughout the business' worldwide operations. The executive said in a previous statement he has been privileged and honored to have led Cooper for nearly a decade through good and challenging times.

“Roy has our thanks for providing strong leadership for nearly a decade, driving record results,” Capo said in a statement, also congratulating Hughes on his appointment. “The past six months have been an extremely smooth period of transition as Brad and Roy have worked closely together to assure that Cooper continues to move forward without interruption on its important growth plans.”

Hughes spent 23 years with Ford Motor Co. prior to his time with Cooper. He joined the firm in November 2009 as chief financial officer, a position he held until Ginger Jones was appointed to the role in December 2014.

In July 2014, he was promoted to president of the firm's International Operations with responsibility of leading all Cooper operations outside of the Americas. Six months later, he was promoted to chief operating officer with responsibility for the firm's worldwide operations throughout North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Latin America.

“I'm excited and honored to take on the role of CEO for a great company with a strong legacy in the tire industry,” Hughes said in a statement. “Cooper teams around the globe have performed extremely well, delivering outstanding results. We will stay focused on our strategic plan, working toward the ambitious goals we have set for the future while staying true to our core value proposition of delivering great performing tires and outstanding customer service at good value.”

Capo was senior vice president and treasurer of DaimlerChrysler Corp. from 1998 to 2000, and for seven years prior he served as treasurer of Chrysler Corp. Before holding those positions, Capo was vice president and controller of Chrysler Financial Corp. He currently serves as a director of Lear Corp. and served as a director of Dollar Thrifty until its sale in 2012.

Cooper said Capo's previous role as lead director is a non-employee, independent board member elected by the independent members of the board. One of Capo's many specific responsibilities in this role was to assist in optimizing the effectiveness of the board and ensure it operates independently of management.