Lori Ryerkerk, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and President of Celanese Corp., will present the AIChE Government and Industry Leaders (AGILE) Award keynote address at the 2022 AIChE Spring Meeting and 18th Global Congress on Process Safety — to be held April 10–14 in San Antonio, TX. Ryerkerk sets the stage for the conferences, which return to an in-person venue after AIChE conducted its 2020 and 2021 conferences virtually.
In her lecture on April 11, Ryerkerk will discuss the ways that digitization and the drive toward sustainability are transforming chemical plants. After her talk, Ryerkerk will receive AIChE's AGILE Award, which recognizes the contributions of innovative executives from organizations that employ chemical engineers.
Ryerkerk’s contributions to the energy industry have encompassed a breadth of leadership roles at petrochemicals and refining businesses in the U.S., Europe, and Asia.
She was named CEO of Celanese — a Fortune 500 global chemical and specialty materials company — in 2019, and was appointed Chairman in 2020. Under Ryerkerk’s leadership, Celanese has been a Founders’ Circle Patron of the AIChE Foundation’s Doing a World of Good campaign, with Ryerkerk serving as a chair of the Foundation’s 2021 Gala.
Prior to joining Celanese, Ryerkerk was the Executive Vice President of Global Manufacturing at Royal Dutch Shell, where she was responsible for all chemical and refining assets and led a team of 30,000 employees and contractors worldwide. She was previously Senior Vice President for Refining, Supply, and Terminals at Hess Corp., after beginning her career at ExxonMobil, where she held a variety of operation and leadership roles in refining, chemical manufacturing, and power generation.
Ryerkerk is a chemical engineering alumnus of Iowa State Univ. Her recent service to the industry includes appointment to the board of directors of the American Chemistry Council and to the board of directors of Eaton Corp., a provider of power management technologies and services.
Learn more about the AIChE Spring Meeting and Global Congress on Process Safety at www.aiche.org/spring.