James Keane Biography and Net Worth

Mr. Keane served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Steelcase Inc. from March 2014 to October 2021. He has held several leadership roles since joining Steelcase in 1997. He served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer from 2001 through 2006. He was named President of the Steelcase Group in 2006, where he had responsibility for the sales, marketing, and product-development activities of certain brands–primarily in North America. In 2011, he assumed leadership of the Steelcase brand across the Americas and Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. From November 2012 to April 2013, he served as Chief Operating Officer, responsible for the design, engineering and development, manufacturing, sales, and distribution of all brands in all countries where Steelcase does business. From April 2013 to March 2014, Mr. Keane served as President and Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Keane has served as Vice Chair since October 2021 and as a director since April 2013 of Steelcase and will serve in that role until his retirement in January 2022. He also serves as a director for the Business Roundtable since February 2020 and as a director or trustee of a number of civic and charitable organizations.

As retired President, Chief Executive Officer and a current board member of a global public company, Mr. Keane brings current business experience and knowledge to the Board. Through his executive roles at Steelcase, he has extensive leadership experience and a comprehensive understanding of business operations, processes, and strategy, as well as risk management, sales, marketing, and product development. In addition, he has a high level of financial literacy and accounting experience, having served as CFO of Steelcase. His understanding of financial statements, accounting principles, internal controls, and audit committee functions provides the Board with expertise in addressing the complex financial issues that the Company manages. Mr. Keane received his Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from the University of Illinois and holds a master’s degree in management from the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University.