Caterpillar adds chief operating officer role

Caterpillar Inc. has appointed Joseph E. Creed to the newly created position of chief operating officer (COO), effective Nov. 1, 2023. Creed is currently serving as group president of Energy & Transportation, a role he has held since 2021. Creed’s replacement will be named at a later date. Both positions will report to Jim Umpleby, Caterpillar chairman and chief executive officer.

Joseph E. Creed (Photo: Caterpillar)

In announcing the appointment, Umpleby cited Creed’s financial experience across the company’s engine and machine business as well as his leadership of the Energy & Transportation segment as positioning him well for the newly created role. “Joe will help lead the continued execution of our strategy for profitable growth,” Umpleby said, “and pursue the market opportunities associated with the energy transition and growing global energy demand.”

Reporting to Creed will be group presidents Tony Fassino of Construction Industries, Denise Johnson of Resource Industries and Bob De Lange of Services, Distribution and Digital.

Creed joined Caterpillar in 1997 and has held various positions of increased responsibility across multiple divisions. He was promoted to chief financial officer for the Energy & Transportation business segment in 2013, then to vice president of Caterpillar’s Finance Services Division in 2017. He also served as the company’s interim chief financial officer in 2018, after which he became vice president of the Oil & Gas and Marine Division and the Electric Power Division. In 2021, he was promoted to group president of Energy & Transportation.

In addition to his current role at Caterpillar, Creed serves on the Western Illinois University President’s National Advisory Council, is an executive board member of the Caterpillar Foundation, and is the executive sponsor of the Caterpillar Employee Resource Group known as ADEPT (Abled and Disabled Employees Partnering Together). He is also a member of the board and past chairman for Easter Seals of Central Illinois.