Nalco (NYSE: NLC), providing essential expertise for water, energy and air, announced that Chief Information Officer Stewart McCutcheon has been named 2011 CIO of the Year by The Executives' Club of Chicago and the Association of Information Technology Professionals. McCutcheon received the award today at The Executives' Club of Chicago's quarterly Technology Conference at the Renaissance Blackstone Hotel.
McCutcheon was selected from a field of 27 top IT executives at some of Chicago's largest and best known companies. A panel of 11 judges, including several past winners, reviewed nominations that were scored in 16 weighted categories, to determine the 2011 winner.
McCutcheon scored highest or tied for highest in six categories including Leadership in Driving Business Value, Leadership in the Global Economy, Leadership in Innovation, Customer Contribution, Current Role in the Business, and Career Background.
He has served as Nalco CIO since 2009, applying innovative solutions to expand competitive advantage and increase productivity across the company. In 2010, he was also named Chief Productivity Officer and given responsibility to achieve annual companywide productivity gains of $100 million in areas such as Supply Chain, Procurement and Administrative Functions.
"The successes we have achieved using information technology to support the key business drivers of Nalco and our customers are the result of a great team effort," said McCutcheon. "The Nalco IT organization has embraced the challenge of becoming the next generation IT team that truly partners with our business units to apply technology to create competitive advantage."
Prior to joining Nalco he served as Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer for Ascis, a leading supply chain software provider and SAP partner. From 2001 to 2006, he was Chief Operating Officer and Chief Technology Officer for Elemica, a business-to-business e-commerce solution provider. McCutcheon previously served in a variety of global business, manufacturing, supply chain, engineering, and IT management roles for DuPont. He is a cum laude graduate of the University of South Carolina with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering.
"The CIO of the year award spotlights the importance of the senior information leadership to overall performance. This is one of the ways The Executives' Club seeks to facilitate knowledge transfer between CIOs and other senior executives," said Melissa Bean, President & CEO, The Executives' Club.
Established in 2003, The Executives' Club's CIO of the Year award recognizes the increasingly important role of chief information officers in value realization and company growth, as well as the importance technology plays in Chicago's economic development. The award is given in collaboration with the Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP).
The Executives' Club of Chicago
The Executives' Club of Chicago is a business forum for thought leadership, professional development, and best business practices. Founded in 1911, The Club is one of the nation's oldest and most prestigious business organizations. The Club serves Chicago's business community by providing information and resources needed to establish effective global partnerships, enhance intellectual exchange, develop business leaders, and promote Chicago as a world class global business center. In 2011 the Club celebrates its Centennial, with four Summits addressing Women's Leadership, Technology, New Leaders, and U.S.-India trade and investment relations.