John W. Thompson
Born: April 24, 1949, in Fort Dix, New Jersey
Company: Symantec Corporation
Position: Chairman, CEO
Industry: Technology
Country: United States
John W. Thompson is chairman of the board of directors and chief executive officer of Symantec Corporation, a company with $2 billion in revenue in 2003. Since joining Symantec in April 1999, Thompson has led the transformation of the company from a consumer software publisher to the global leader in information security solutions for individuals and enterprises.
In September 2002, President George W. Bush appointed Thompson to the National Infrastructure Advisory Committee (NIAC), to make recommendations regarding the security of the critical infrastructure of the United States. In addition, Thompson has served as the chair of the Silicon Valley Blue Ribbon Task Force on Aviation Security and Technology to identify and evaluate technology-driven solutions to improve the security and efficiency of national and local aviation.
Prior to joining Symantec, Thompson had a distinguished career with the IBM Corporation where he worked for 28 years holding senior executive positions in sales, marketing and software development. In his last assignment, he was general manager of IBM Americas and a member of the companies Worldwide Management Council.
Thompson is a member of the board of directors of UPS, NiSource, Inc., and Seagate. He completed his undergraduate studies at Florida A&M University and holds a master's degree in management science from MIT's Sloan School of Management. He is the first black person to head a major technology company.
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