Cindy Niekamp is a seasoned C-suite executive and board director with over 30 years of experience in global automotive, chemical, and industrial businesses. She brings extensive P&L leadership experience running global multi-billion-dollar manufacturing and technology-based businesses, complemented by critical corporate roles as Chief Financial Officer and SVP Corporate Strategy at Fortune 500 companies. Her successful track record includes driving transformational business changes through teamwork, growth, and improved financial performance. Niekamp has over 20 years of experience as an independent board director and currently serves on the boards of Ball Corporation (NYSE: BALL) and PACCAR, Inc. (NASDAQ: PCCR). Her decades-long passion for leadership development led her to her current role as an ExCo mentor and executive coach.

Most recently, Niekamp was SVP of PPG Industries (NYSE: PPG), serving as General Manager of Automotive Coatings, a $3B global business unit with 200 sites in 15 countries serving automakers around the world with high performance exterior and interior coatings. She led the business through a major financial and strategic turnaround and subsequently led the business through years of high growth, both organic and through acquisitions.

In other significant P&L roles, Niekamp was President of BorgWarner, Inc. (NYSE: BWA)’s global four-wheel-drive systems business, supplying engineered components and systems to automakers in North America, Europe, and Asia. She also was President of the Specialty Paper Division at Mead, a global technical and industrial paper producer, SVP of MeadWestvaco’s specialty chemical and paper businesses, and P&L leader at TRW Technar, Inc., a maker of automotive air bag crash sensors. Her corporate roles included Chief Financial Officer at MeadWestvaco (NYSE: MWV) and Chief Strategy & Development Officer at Mead, MeadWestvaco and TRW’s automotive engine and aftermarket businesses. She started her career at General Motors in Ohio and France, where she honed her manufacturing leadership skills as superintendent and plant manager. Niekamp previously served on the boards of Magna International (NYSE: MGA), Cooper Tire & Rubber (NYSE: CTB), Rockwood Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ROC), and Delphi Corp (NYSE: DLPH).

Niekamp has an MBA from Harvard Business School, a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University, and coaching certificates from the Center for Executive Coaching and the International Coaching Federation. She resides in Birmingham, MI, and Naples, FL, and has 2 daughters and 2 grandkids. She speaks French, is a competitive ballroom dancer, and loves to cycle, read, and travel internationally.