Seattle picks Fick as port director

   Port of Seattle commissioners have selected businessman Ted J. Fick as the port’s next chief executive officer, effective Sept. 29. The appointment must be formally approved by the port commission at its Sept. 11 public meeting.
   Fick will replace Tay Yoshitani, who is retiring as port director.
   “Ted has the right combination of skills and dynamic leadership to help the Port of Seattle thrive in the globally competitive environment ports face today. He brings the fresh perspective and breadth of experience we need to help our region generate new jobs and economic growth,” Commission Co-President Courtney Gregoire said in a statement.
   Fick has spent many years leading companies engaged in international business. Most recently he served as CEO of Polar Corp., a $475 million trailer and component parts manufacturer based in Minnesota. The company has multiple manufacturing plants and a workforce of more than 2,000 people.
   From 1983 to 2000, he held executive positions at truck manufacturer PACCAR and its Kenworth division. Fick was senior vice president of Hino Diesel Trucks (USA) from 2000 to 2001. He spent the next two years as vice president of commercial tire systems at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. From 2004 to 2007, Fick was president of Thermo King Corp. – Americas, a maker of refrigeration units for truck trailers, rail cars and ocean containers. He was CEO of of CPI Card Group from 2007-2008. He started his career helping to run his family’s company, Fick Foundry, in Tacoma, Wash.
   “Ted’s experience across multiple facets of the supply chain, coupled with an ability to manage organizations through growth and change, make him the right leader at the right time,” the commission’s other co-president, Stephanie Bowman, said.
   There have been a many changes in the leadership of U.S. ports in the past year, including wholesale turnover of CEOs at West Coast ports. Across the country, port authorities continue to hire industry executives with experience in ocean transportation, supply chain or manufacturing rather than only port operations.
   The Port of Long Beach recently picked Jon Slangerup, a one-time CEO of FedEx Canada, to be its new chief executive. After leaving FedEx, he headed several technology start ups involved in supply chain management software and clean energy production. 
   Slangerup replaced Christopher Lytle, who left a year ago to take the top job at the Port of Oakland.
   In June, Gene Seroka, who previously headed the Americas region for container line APL, took the helm at the Port of Los Angeles.
   In February, John Reinhart took over as port director at the Virginia Port Authority after heading Maersk Line Ltd., the Norfolk-based U.S. flag subsidiary of Denmark’s A.P. Moller-Maersk Group. Maersk is the largest container shipping line in the world.
   Last year, the Jacksonville Port Authority hired former Horizon Lines executive Brian Taylor as its CEO. In March, Paul Cozza was appointed CEO of the North Carolina State Ports Authority after serving in several positions — most recently chief financial officer — at Maersk Line. 
  South Carolina Ports Authority CEO Jim Newsome previously was president of Hapag-Lloyd (America), Inc. Several current port directors held executive positions at Sea-Land, the former U.S. carrier bought by Maersk 15 years ago, including Taylor, Christopher Lytle at the Port of Oakland, and Curtis Foltz at the Georgia Ports Authority.