James Fitterling Biography and Net Worth

Jim Fitterling is the chairman and chief executive officer of Dow, a global materials science company with 2020 sales of $39 billion.

He has played a key role in the Company’s transformation, from lower-margin, commodity businesses to one more deeply focused on higher-growth, consumer demand-driven markets that value innovation – with the goal of creating the most innovative, customer-centric, inclusive and sustainable materials science company in the world.

Fitterling was named chief executive officer-elect of Dow in March 2018, prior to becoming CEO in July 2018. He was elected chairman in April 2020. Before becoming CEO, he served as president and chief operating officer of Dow. From September 2017 through March 2019, he also served as chief operating officer for the Materials Science Division of DowDuPont, an $86 billion holding company comprised of The Dow Chemical Company and DuPont, created with the intent to form independent, publicly traded companies in materials science, agriculture and specialty products sectors. On April 1, 2019, Dow separated from DowDuPont.

During his 35-year career at Dow, Fitterling has held leadership positions in many of the Company’s business units, in corporate development and in business operations. In addition, he served as the business lead in Dow’s successful launch of its next-generation sustainability goals. At his direction, in January 2019, Dow became a founding member of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW), an initiative to accelerate efforts to drive innovation, provide much-needed resources, and take decisive action to put an end to plastic waste in the environment.