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Avnet, Inc. CEO Roy Vallee to speak at Thunderbird

Avnet, Inc. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Roy Vallee will be speaking at Thunderbird School of Global Management Thursday, March 19, beginning at 1:10 p.m. His topic “Accelerating Profitable Growth, what the strategic planners don’t want you to know” will be presented to students, faculty and staff and is open to the media and general public.

Vallee will share his perspective on the strategic long-term advantages that are created when customer loyalty and employee engagement are tightly interconnected and effectively carried out in unison. Attendees will hear how this approach to doing business drives the strategic planning process and is vital to helping a company achieve its vision.

Avnet, a Fortune 500 company, is one of the largest technology distributors with over 12,000 employees serving customers worldwide. Vallee joined Hamilton/Avnet as a field sales representative in 1977. Through subsequent promotions he held positions such as systems business manager, general sales manager, general manager, regional director and vice president.

In 1989 Vallee was appointed president of Hamilton/Avnet Computer, and in 1990 was named senior vice president and director of Worldwide Electronics Operations for Avnet. He was elected to Avnet's board of directors in November 1991, and in March 1992 was appointed president and chief operating officer. In July 1998, Vallee was named chairman of the board and CEO of Avnet, Inc.

The groundwork for Avnet's future as an international company had begun in 1991 with the acquisition of U.K-based The Access Group, a semiconductor distributor. In quick succession 21 more important strategic companies had been acquired in Europe, South Africa, Asia and the United States.

When Vallee assumed the chairman and chief executive role, he continued on the acquisition path and since 1998 Avnet has made 40 acquisitions to increase its geographic coverage, size and scope, and add on new suppliers and customers.

Vallee’s visit is part of Thunderbird’s Global Issues Forum Speaker series which brings speakers from diverse backgrounds to Thunderbird to share a wealth of experience with the Thunderbird community.

Members of the public interested in attending must RSVP to Barbara Stevenson at 602-978-7327 or barbara.stevenson@thunderbird.edu.

Members of the media are asked to contact Brian Camen at brian.camen@thunderbird.edu or 602-978-7922 if you are planning to cover the event. Thunderbird’s campus is located on the southeast corner of 59th Avenue and Greenway Road. The presentation will be held in Lecture Hall 53.