Nancy Berardinelli-Krantz is joining WW Grainger as senior vice president and chief legal officer (CLO), effective January 30.
Berardinelli-Krantz will move to Grainger from Eaton Corporation, where she is senior vice president and deputy CLO. Earlier in her career she held senior leadership positions at The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company and worked at law firm of Jones Day.
Berardinelli-Krantz is also a veteran of the US Army as a member of the judge advocate general's corps. During her service she was a trial attorney in Fort Hood, Texas, and for the contract appeals division in Washington, DC. She also served as a trial defense counsel in Baghdad.
DG Macpherson, chair and CEO of Grainger, says in a statement: ‘Nancy's broad scope of legal knowledge, ethics and compliance experience and leadership in the Army makes her an excellent fit to lead our legal function and strengthen our values across the organization, with our customers and in our communities. Her distinguished career in the legal, business and government environment coupled with her ability to lead with integrity matches Grainger's purpose-driven culture. We look forward to welcoming her to the Grainger team.’
Berardinelli-Krantz will succeed John Howard, who will retire from Grainger in July 2023 after 23 years with the company. Howard joined Grainger in 2000 as senior vice president and general counsel and oversees the company's legal and corporate environment, health and safety and corporate security teams.
Before joining Grainger, Howard was vice president and general counsel at Tenneco Automotive, a subsidiary of Tenneco. His earlier work included being vice president for law and assistant general counsel for Tenneco. From 1990 to 1993 he was counsel to US Vice President Dan Quayle. He previously held a number of government legal positions including associate deputy general counsel in the US Department of Justice.
Macpherson says: ‘For more than 20 years, John Howard has [shown] unwavering dedication and service to Grainger and our customers. John's leadership on legal, business and people matters has guided Grainger, and he's set a standard of placing truth and respect at the center of everything we do. On behalf of the entire Grainger team, we are grateful for the impact John has made on the company, our customers and the industry.’
Ben Maiden
Ben Maiden is the editor-at-large of Governance Intelligence, an IR Media publication, having joined the company in December 2016. He is based in New York. Ben was previously managing editor of Compliance Reporter, covering regulatory and compliance...
