SEATTLE - Forest products giant Weyerhaeuser announced that its current CEO Doyle R. Simons has elected to retire, and its board of directors has appointed Devin W. Stockfish as president and chief executive officer, effective Jan. 1, 2019. Stockfish, currently senior vice president of the company's Timberlands business, will join the company's board of directors on Jan. 1, 2019, at which point Simons will step down from the board and become senior advisor until his retirement on Apr. 1, 2019.

 

"In anticipation of this planned transition, the board conducted an extensive succession process and unanimously determined that Devin is the right leader to take this company to the next level," said Rick R. Holley, chairman of Weyerhaeuser's board of directors. "Devin has a proven ability to achieve results and an impressive breadth of experience that spans various industries. We are excited about the energy and vision he will bring to this role as we continue to focus on industry-leading performance and disciplined capital allocation."

 

"During his tenure as CEO, Doyle has done an outstanding job of focusing the business portfolio, driving improved performance, allocating capital, growing the company and building a strong leadership bench," Holley continued. "On behalf of the board, I thank Doyle for his tremendous leadership and accomplishments, and wish him all the best in his well-deserved retirement."

 

"It's been an honor to lead this company for the last five years, and I'm proud of the progress we made in positioning Weyerhaeuser for continued value creation with a streamlined portfolio, improved operational and financial performance and an incredibly talented leadership team," said Simons. "Building the next generation of leaders has been a key priority during my tenure as CEO and the Board and I are confident Weyerhaeuser will continue to thrive under Devin's leadership.

 

Stockfish said: "It's an absolute privilege to become Weyerhaeuser's next president and chief executive officer. We have a world-class team of talented employees who are working every day to build on our momentum as the industry leader."

 

As part of the leadership succession plan, the board of directors also announced the following appointments:

 

Adrian Blocker will succeed Stockfish as senior vice president of Timberlands, effective Jan. 1, 2019. Blocker currently leads the company's Wood Products business.

 

Keith O'Rear will succeed Blocker as senior vice president of Wood Products, also effective Jan. 1, 2019. O'Rear currently leads the company's Wood Products Sales and Marketing organization.

 

Weyerhaeuser owns or controls more than 13 million acres of timberlands, located primarily in the United States. It also manages additional timberlands in Canada under long-term licenses.