United Rentals announced that William Plummer will retire as executive vice president and chief financial officer of the company on Oct. 12. Plummer is the company’s longest-serving CFO, joining the company in 2008. He will remain until Jan. 31, 2019, in an advisory capacity.
The United Rentals board of directors named Jessica Graziano chief financial officer effective Oct. 12. Graziano joined United Rentals in Dec. 2014 as controller and principal accounting officer and was promoted to her current role in March 2017. In this role, she works closely with the senior leadership team and oversees the company’s accounting, financial planning and analysis and insurance departments. Graziano has more than two decades of financial management experience, previously serving as senior vice president, principal financial officer, chief accounting officer and corporate controller for Revlon Inc. Earlier she held senior financial positions with UST Inc. (now Altria Group), Sturm, Ruger & Co., and KPMG LLP.
“We deeply appreciate Bill’s extraordinary contributions to United Rentals over the last decade and the strong leadership he has provided,” said Michael Kneeland, CEO of United Rentals. “He will remain available to the executive team in an advisory capacity. On a personal note, I want to thank Bill for being an incredible partner in transforming our company and serving our shareholders. We all wish him the very best in his retirement from the company.”
During his tenure at United, Plummer brought his significant expertise to helping the company execute a strategy of strong organic growth and acquisitions, strengthening the company’s capital structure and improving profitability and free cash flow. Plummer was known for his contributions to improving the company’s systems and processes as well.
“It has been a privilege to provide financial leadership to United Rentals during a pivotal 10 years of growth,” said Plummer. “While I’m incredibly proud of the results we produced, I’m even more proud of the team that delivered those results and I know they will continue to do so. Jessica and I have worked closely together for more than three years, and I’ve seen her strengths firsthand. I’m stepping down with the knowledge that, under her leadership, the company will continue its focus on balancing growth and returns.”
Before joining United Rentals, Plummer was chief financial officer of Dow Jones & Co., and treasurer of Alcoa Inc. He has received numerous awards, including recognition as one of the United States’ Best CFOs by Institutional Investor magazine, and one of the 100 Most Powerful Executives in in corporate America by Black Enterprise magazine. Plummer also serves on the boards of directors of John Wiley & Sons Inc. and Global Payments Inc.
