For immediate release: December 20, 2016
Thomas A. Fanning, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Southern Company, has been reappointed chair and Mike J. Jackson, chairman, chief executive officer and president of AutoNation Inc., has been reappointed deputy chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's board of directors. Their one-year terms begin Jan. 1, 2017.
Fanning became president of Southern Company in August 2010 and assumed the additional responsibilities of chief executive officer and chairman in December 2010. He has worked for Southern Company for more than 35 years and has held 15 different positions in eight different business units, including numerous officer positions with a variety of Southern Company subsidiaries in the areas of finance, strategy, international business development and technology.
Fanning serves as chairman of the Edison Electric Institute. He is co-chair of the Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council, which serves as the principal liaison between the federal government and the electric power sector to protect the electric grid from threats that could impact national security. He is a member of the international advisory board of the Atlantic Council and the American Energy Innovation Council. He serves on the Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business advisory board, the board of trustees for the Georgia Tech Foundation, the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations board of directors and the World Association of Nuclear Operators Atlanta Centre governing board. He also serves on the board of directors of the Vulcan Materials Company and is a member of the Business Roundtable.
Fanning earned bachelor's and master's degrees in industrial management and was also awarded an honorary doctor of philosophy degree from Georgia Tech. His executive education includes programs at the International Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland, the Harvard University School of Business and the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business.
Jackson joined AutoNation as chief executive officer in 1999 and assumed the role of chairman in 2002 and president in 2015. Before joining AutoNation, Jackson served as president and chief executive officer of Mercedes-Benz, USA, where he helped create the vision and direction that led to the luxury vehicle brand's rejuvenation in the United States. Previously, he served as the managing partner of Euro Motorcars of Bethesda, Md., an operator of 11 new vehicle franchises.
Jackson served on the board of directors for the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's Miami Branch and chaired the branch's board in 2013. He is a member of the board of governors and the immediate past chair of the Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale and currently serves on the board of trustees of Nova Southeastern University. He was named Automotive Hall of Fame Industry Leader of the Year in 2003, and in 2009, he was designated as one of the "Fifty Visionary Dealers" of all time by Automotive News. He was inducted into the Wayne Huizenga School of Business Entrepreneur Hall of Fame in 2010, and in 2012, he was named by Fortune magazine as one of the "Top 50 Global Business Leaders." Jackson has been named Dealer of the Year by Automotive News for the sixth time, and 10 times overall. In April 2014, he was inducted as a member of the prestigious Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans Inc.
Jackson received his bachelor's degree from St. Joseph's College (now University) in Philadelphia.
Each of the nation's 12 Federal Reserve Banks has a nine-member board of directors. Three Class A directors are generally bankers and are elected by national and state-chartered banks that are members of the Federal Reserve System. Three Class B directors are also elected by these banks but represent commerce, industry, agriculture, labor and consumers. Three Class C directors represent the same broad array of public interests but are appointed by the Board of Governors in Washington, D.C. The Reserve Bank's chair and deputy chair must be Class C directors.
The board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta oversees the management of the bank's operations and recommends changes in the discount rate. Board members also contribute to the formulation of U.S. monetary policy through the economic information they provide the bank's president.