Roger Ferguson, President and CEO, TIAA-CREF, Named as CED Co-Chair

Business-led Group Focuses on America's Fiscal Health

WASHINGTON, June 22, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Committee for Economic Development (CED) has named Roger W. Ferguson, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer of financial services firm, TIAA-CREF, as a new co-chair.  Mr. Ferguson has been a CED Trustee since 2008 and is a leading business voice on economic policy.  He has served as Vice-Chairman of the Board of Governors of the U.S. Federal Reserve System, and is a member of President Obama's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness. He also served on the President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board and was an Associate and Partner at McKinsey & Company after receiving his B.A., J.D. and Ph.D. from Harvard University.

"We are very fortunate to have Roger Ferguson take a leadership role at CED.  CED's mission for almost 70 years has been to partner with the public and private sectors to improve the growth and productivity of our country by implementing strong, long-term policies on major economic and social issues. Roger's current leadership at TIAA-CREF combined with his background at the Federal Reserve and McKinsey make him uniquely qualified to advance our efforts to promote sustained economic growth that benefits all Americans," said CED's President, Charles Kolb.

Mr. Ferguson succeeds Dr. Joseph Kasputys, Founder of IHS Global Insight, Inc. and Chairman of China Monitor, Inc., who has served as CED Co-Chair since June 2008.  Mr. Kasputys will continue as a CED Trustee and a member of the CED Executive Committee.  Donald K. Peterson, Former Chairman and CEO, Avaya Inc., will continue as CED Co-Chair.  CED's Board of Trustees consists of some 200 CEOs, senior business executives, retired CEOs, and university presidents.  

“When I was Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, I had a great opportunity to work closely with Roger Ferguson who was then Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board.  At all times, Roger was a very informed and wise observer of the American economic scene, both the private and public sectors,” said Peter G. Peterson, Chairman and Founder of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation and former U.S. Secretary of Commerce.  Mr. Peterson is CED’s longest-serving Trustee.  

"The Committee for Economic Development has a long history of championing sound fiscal policy, early education, strong corporate governance and investment in our workforce," said Roger Ferguson.  "It is an honor to be named co-chair and I look forward to partnering with the Trustees to advance the CED's work supporting economic growth and development and greater opportunity for all Americans."

For more on CED: www.ced.org

About Roger Ferguson

Roger W. Ferguson, Jr., is President and Chief Executive Officer of TIAA-CREF, the leading provider of retirement services in the academic, research, medical, and cultural fields and a Fortune 100 financial services organization with more than $450 billion in combined assets under management.

Mr. Ferguson served as Vice Chairman of the Board of Governors of the U.S. Federal Reserve System. He was a voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee, served as Chairman of the Financial Stability Forum, and chaired Federal Reserve Board committees on banking supervision and regulation, payment system policy, and reserve bank oversight.

Prior to joining TIAA-CREF in April 2008, Mr. Ferguson was head of financial services for Swiss Re, Chairman of Swiss Re America Holding Corporation, and a member of the company's executive committee. From 1984 to 1997, he was an Associate and Partner at McKinsey & Company. He began his career as an attorney at the New York City office of Davis Polk & Wardwell.

Mr. Ferguson is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences and a member of the Academy's Commission on the Humanities and Social Sciences. He is a member of President Obama's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness and served on its predecessor, the Economic Recovery Advisory Board.

Mr. Ferguson serves on the Board of Directors of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. and on the boards of several non-profit organizations, including the Board of Trustees of the Institute for Advanced Study, the Board of Overseers of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, and the Board of Trustees of the Committee for Economic Development. He is a member of the Advisory Board of Brevan Howard Asset Management LLP and serves as co-chair of the National Academy of Sciences' Committee on the Long-Run Macro-Economic Effects of the Aging U.S. Population. He is vice chairman of the Economic Club of New York and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Harvard University Visiting Committee for the Memorial Church, and the Group of Thirty.

Mr. Ferguson holds a B.A., J.D., and a Ph.D. in economics, all from Harvard University.

For more on TIAA-CREF: https://www.tiaa-cref.org/public/index.html

CED is a non-profit, non-partisan organization of more than 200 business leaders and university presidents. Since 1942, its research and policy programs have addressed many of the nation's most pressing economic and social issues, including education reform, workforce competitiveness, campaign finance, health care, and global trade and finance. CED promotes policies to produce increased productivity and living standards, greater and more equal opportunity for every citizen, and an improved quality of life for all.

CED CONTACT: Morgan Broman – (202) 469-7814  [email protected]
TIAA-CREF CONTACT: John McCool – (212) 916-6223 [email protected]

SOURCE Committee for Economic Development