Akron, OH, USA – November 2024 – FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) has announced the appointment of Karen McClendon as Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO), effective November 11. In her new role, McClendon will lead FirstEnergy’s human capital strategy, focusing on talent management, benefits and compensation, labor and employee relations, and the company’s commitment to an inclusive workforce reflective of the communities it serves. She will report directly to Brian Tierney, President and CEO of FirstEnergy.
Tierney expressed confidence in McClendon’s leadership: “Karen is a resourceful and decisive leader who brings to FirstEnergy deep experience building and fostering a culture where employees feel empowered to reach their full potential. I am confident she will help us advance our strategic initiatives, including our culture transformation, and drive a continuous improvement mindset that will accelerate our progress toward becoming a premier electric company.”
McClendon joins FirstEnergy with over 30 years of human resources experience. Most recently, she served as CHRO at Paychex, where she enhanced the employee experience through competitive compensation and benefits and transformed the HR function with data-driven decision-making. Previously, she spent 19 years at Comcast Corp. in various HR leadership roles and held senior HR positions with Aramark Corporation, Exelon Corporation, Zone Telecom, and Sesame Workshop.
McClendon holds a Bachelor of Science in business administration from Old Dominion University and an MBA from Temple University. She is an active community member, having served on the boards of The Career Wardrobe, ACHIEVEability, and the Southern New Jersey Chamber of Commerce. She has received the Apex Employee Training Award three times and was recognized as a Woman of Distinction by the Philadelphia Business Journal.
About FirstEnergy:
FirstEnergy is committed to integrity, safety, reliability, and operational excellence. Its electric distribution companies form one of the largest investor-owned electric systems in the U.S., serving over 6 million customers across Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland, and New York. FirstEnergy’s transmission subsidiaries operate more than 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions.
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