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Oscar Munoz (executive)

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Oscar Munoz
Born (1959-01-05) January 5, 1959 (age 65)
California, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Southern California (BS)
Pepperdine University (MBA)
Occupation(s)Former CEO and Chairman of United Airlines
Board Member
Notable workTurnaround Time
TermSept 2015–May 2021
PredecessorJeff Smisek
SuccessorScott Kirby
SpouseCathy Munoz
Children4
Websiteoscar-munoz.com

Oscar Munoz (born January 5, 1959) is an American businessman, board member,[1][2] and public speaker who was executive chairman of United Airlines from 2020 to 2021,[3] after having been chief executive officer (CEO) of United Airlines from 2015 to 2020. Prior to his role at United Airlines, Munoz served on the board of parent company United Continental Holdings (UCH) and held multiple executive positions at CSX Corporation and AT&T.

In December 2019, Munoz announced that he would transition to the role of executive chairman of the board in May 2020. President Scott Kirby took over the CEO role from Munoz in May 2020 at United's annual meeting.[4]

Early life and education

[edit]

Munoz was born on January 5, 1959,[5] the eldest of ten children in a Mexican-American family from Southern California.[6] He was the first in his family to graduate from college.[5] Munoz earned a BS in business from the University of Southern California in 1982,[6] and an MBA from Pepperdine University.[7][8]

Career

[edit]

Munoz began his career holding various financial positions at PepsiCo, afterwards becoming a regional vice president of finance and administration for The Coca-Cola Company.[7]

Munoz was CFO for US West beginning in 1999. When the company merged with Qwest in 2000, he was vice president of finance for the combined company until 2001.[9] From 2001 to 2003, he was the chief financial officer and vice president of consumer services at AT&T.[10]

He joined the CSX Corporation in 2003 as chief financial officer and chief of strategy.[6][11] In 2012, he was promoted to chief operating officer of CSX, a role which he held until 2015, when he was named president of the company.[12][11] During his tenure as chief operating officer, Munoz was responsible for keeping trains running on time.[5] In mid-2015, Munoz was appointed as the next CEO of CSX, officially slated to start in the position at the end of the year, before leaving the company in September 2015 to become CEO of United Airlines.[6]

Munoz was named CEO of United Airlines on September 8, 2015, succeeding Jeff Smisek.[12][11] At the time of this appointment, Munoz had been a member of the board of directors of United's parent company, United Continental Holdings (UCH), since its formation in 2004.[11]

After becoming CEO of United Airlines, Munoz embarked on a "listening tour" of the company, meeting with disgruntled employees around the United States and discussing their concerns.[5] While this phase was intended to last for the first 90 days of the job,[13] Munoz was hospitalized after having a heart attack in October 2015, 38 days into the job.[6]

In 2015, five years after the merger of Continental and United, staff remained on separate labor contracts and were only allowed to fly on the routes and planes for the company where they were employed before the merger, causing contentions between management and labor.[6][5] Under Munoz's tenure, five-year contracts for flight attendants were approved within four months, after years of negotiations.[6][5][14] By the end of 2016, all union labor contracts were renegotiated.[15] Although pilots were unable to reach a joint labor agreement in 2012, United agreed to a two-year contract extension with the pilots' union in 2016, under Munoz, allowing pilots to retain some of the pay and benefits that were cut after the September 11 attacks.[5] On August 29, 2016, Munoz hired Scott Kirby, then-president of American Airlines, to fill the same role at United.[6]

In 2015, Munoz was one of two Hispanic CEOs in the top 100 of the Fortune 500 list.[16] Munoz has been named among the "100 Most Influential Hispanics" by Hispanic Business magazine.[13] In March 2017, Munoz was named "Communicator of the Year for 2017" by PRWeek.[17]

The following month, Munoz received widespread criticism for his handling of the issues after a ticketed passenger was forcibly removed from United Airlines Flight 3411.[18] In an email to United employees, Munoz initially stated that he stood behind employees for having "followed established procedures" and said that Dao was "disruptive and belligerent."[19] In a second press release on April 11, which was more sensitive to public opinion, Munoz apologized "for having to re-accommodate these customers".[20][21] Munoz's handling of the incident was described by various critics as a "fumbling response,"[17][22][23] a "major disappointment,"[24] and a "sort of a self-immolation [that] makes you wonder about his choice as CEO."[25] Munoz was already under pressure from activist shareholders to improve United's performance, including its customer relations, after he took charge of the airline in 2015.[26] After the incident, Steve Barrett, editor-in-chief of PRWeek US, stated "if PRWeek was choosing its Communicator of the Year now, we would not be awarding it to Oscar Munoz … In time, the episode and subsequent response will be quoted in textbooks as an example of how not to respond in a crisis."[27] Subsequently, on April 21, 2017, UCH announced that Munoz would remain chief executive officer of the airlines but would "not take broader control of the company as previously planned."[28] Munoz had been scheduled to assume the role of chairman of the board of UCH at the company's 2018 annual stockholders' meeting.[28]

In December 2019, it was announced that Munoz would transition to the role of executive chairman of the board in May 2020.[21] In March 2020, Munoz thanked the United States Government for bailing out the US airline industry, and pledged a number of its planes to deliver critical medical supplies during the pandemic.[29] In April 1, 2020, Munoz spoke with U.S. Senator Dick Durbin about the COVID-19's impact in the airline industry, and how the CARES Act would help his plan to use federal relief funding to secure jobs and protect consumers during the crisis.[30] Then President Scott Kirby took over the CEO role from Munoz in May 2020 at United's annual meeting.[31] Munoz was positioned to serve a one-year term as chairman of United Airlines Holdings, succeeding retired Jane Garvey.[15][32]

On May 27, 2021, it was announced that Edward "Ted" Philip would succeed Munoz as non-executive chairman of United Airlines Holdings, Inc.[33]

Munoz has also served on University of North Florida's board of trustees and the PAFA advisory board of Vanderbilt University.[13][34] Munoz is a voting member of the University of Southern California Board of Trustees, where he serves as co-chair of the Finance and Campus Planning Committee.[35][36]

Author

[edit]

In 2023, Munoz wrote his first memoir, Turnaround Time,[37][38][39] which talks about his upbringing as an immigrant in the US and how he became the first Latino CEO of a major U.S. airline.[40] In the book, he also writes about how he launched a listening tour to talk directly to frontline employees to get their input, which in turn informed his comeback strategy for United Airlines. He further discusses his 2015 heart attack and heart transplant[41]

Public speaking

[edit]

Munoz speaks on the future of business, leadership, resilience, perseverance, workplace culture, aviation, adapting to change and the importance of frontline workers. [42][43][44] He has spoken to CNBC, [45] CBS News,[46] Forbes,[47] TIME,[48] Fast Company,[49] ABC ''Local-ish'',[50] Fox Business,[51] The Wall Street Journal,[52] Inc.com,[53] Business Insider,[54] The Brunswick Group, CNN,[55] Bloomberg,[56] and many more.

Board positions

[edit]

Munoz holds the following board positions: Member Board Of Directors at Salesforce,[57] Member Board Of Trustees at Fidelity Investments,[58][59] Member Board Of Directors at CBRE,[60] Member Board Of Directors at Univision,[61] Member Board Of Directors at Archer,[62] Member of the Defense Business Board at the United States Department of Defense,[63][64] Executive Advisor at Cleerly, Member Board Of Trustees at the University of Southern California,[65] and Member Board Of Trustees at The Brookings Institution,[66] among others.

Personal life

[edit]

Munoz is married; he and his wife have four children.[6] Munoz is also an avid cyclist[6] and has run in marathons.[5]

Philanthropy

[edit]

In 2011, the couple gave $100,000 to the University of North Florida to fund a scholarship for students who are the first in their family to attend college.[13] The same year, the couple donated $1 million to a middle school in Florida to fund a dropout prevention program.[67]

Health

[edit]

Munoz suffered a heart attack on October 15, 2015, a month after he assumed the position of CEO of United Airlines.[68] As he awaited a heart transplant, Munoz interviewed candidates for top management jobs in his apartment while connected to machines that kept his heart functioning.[5] On January 5, 2016, he received a heart transplant and returned to work in March 2016.[6] Munoz is one of few CEOs to continue in the position after receiving a heart transplant.[6] He has spoken publicly about his vegan diet and has since transitioned to what he refers to as a "flexitarian" diet after his heart transplant.[6]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Oscar Munoz - Retired Chairman, President & CEO United Airlines".
  2. ^ "Oscar Munoz - Former Executive Chairman & CEO". August 14, 2023.
  3. ^ "Interview: Leadership with Oscar Munoz, Former United Airlines CEO". June 17, 2023.
  4. ^ Miller, Ben (May 20, 2020). "United Airlines' changing of the guard occurring Wednesday". Houston Business Journal. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Zhang, Benjamin (February 18, 2017). "United's CEO cheated death a month into the job and is now leading the company in a battle to become America's best airline". Business Insider. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Tully, Shawn (November 18, 2016). "How United's Oscar Munoz Bounced Back After a Heart Transplant". Fortune. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  7. ^ a b Kuehner-Hebert, Katie (November 18, 2019). "Under CEO Oscar Munoz, United Airlines Holdings Inc. Ups Its 2019 Guidance". Chief Executive. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  8. ^ "Oscar Munoz". August 14, 2023.
  9. ^ Rubino, Joe (February 7, 2020). "United Airlines CEO Munoz signs new DIA lease, addresses airport's troubled terminal project". The Denver Post. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  10. ^ Werley, Jensen (September 9, 2015). "Here's why Oscar Munoz made the surprising move from CSX to United Airlines". Chicago Business Journal. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  11. ^ a b c d Lazare, Lewis (September 8, 2015). "United Airlines CEO Jeff Smisek abruptly resigns, as Oscar Munoz steps into the post". Chicago Business Journal. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  12. ^ a b Morris, Betsy; Carey, Susan (September 9, 2015). "New United CEO Oscar Munoz Is Unusual Choice for Airline Industry". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  13. ^ a b c d Karp, Gregory (September 9, 2015). "New United CEO faces challenges ahead". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
  14. ^ Carey, Susan (August 18, 2016). "United Continental Names New CFO, Commercial Chief". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  15. ^ a b Leinfelder, Andrea (December 5, 2019). "United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz to become executive chairman". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  16. ^ Garcia, Ahiza (September 5, 2015). "Only 9 Hispanic CEOs at top 500 companies". CNN Money. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  17. ^ a b Rhodan, Maya (April 10, 2017). "People Are Not Happy the United Airlines CEO Was Recently Named 'Communicator of the Year'". Time. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  18. ^ "United Airlines boss Oscar Munoz will not resign". BBC News. April 12, 2017. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  19. ^ Rosoff, Matt (April 10, 2017). "United CEO doubles down in email to employees, says passenger was 'disruptive and belligerent'". CNBC. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  20. ^ Domonoske, Camila (April 11, 2017). "After Unsatisfying Answers, United Offers 'Deepest Apology' For Violent Confrontation". NPR. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  21. ^ a b LeBeau, Phil (December 5, 2019). "United's Oscar Munoz to step down as CEO, President Scott Kirby will take over". CNBC. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  22. ^ Sasso, Michael; Bachman, Justin; Lin, Linly (April 11, 2017). "United CEO Apologizes Again After First Mea Culpa Falls Flat". Bloomberg News. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
  23. ^ Rosoff, Matt (April 10, 2017). "United CEO doubles down in email to employees, says passenger was 'disruptive and belligerent'". CNBC. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
  24. ^ Petroff, Alanna (April 11, 2017). "United Airlines shows how to make a PR crisis a total disaster". CNN Money. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  25. ^ "United's Munoz Goes From Savior to Man on Hot Seat Real Fast". Bloomberg News. April 11, 2017. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
  26. ^ Wise, Alana (April 12, 2017). "United Airlines faces mounting pressure over hospitalized passenger". Reuters. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
  27. ^ Barrett, Steve (April 12, 2017). "United Airlines needs to do better". PR Week. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  28. ^ a b Wattles, Jackie; Ostrower, John (April 22, 2017). "United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz won't be promoted to chairman". CNN Money. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  29. ^ "CEO of bailed-out United Airlines thanks America for 'vital public assistance' and pledges aircraft to deliver medical supplies throughout the world". Business Insider. March 28, 2020.
  30. ^ "Durbin Discusses COVID-19 Relief Bill With United Airlines CEO". April 1, 2020.
  31. ^ Lazare, Lewis (December 5, 2019). "Inside United Airlines' move to tap Scott Kirby as CEO". Chicago Business Journal. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  32. ^ Josephs, Leslie (December 6, 2019). "United Airlines' next CEO is a 'details guy' who will have labor contracts and the 737 Max on his plate". CNBC. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
  33. ^ Airlines, United (May 27, 2021). "United Airlines Names Edward 'Ted' Philip as Non-Executive Chairman of Its Board of Directors". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  34. ^ Kuehner-Hebert, Katie (November 18, 2019). "Under CEO Oscar Munoz, United Airlines Holdings Inc. Ups Its 2019 Guidance". Chief Executive. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
  35. ^ "Finance and Campus Planning | Board of Trustees | USC". boardoftrustees.usc.edu. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  36. ^ "Trustees | Board of Trustees | USC". boardoftrustees.usc.edu. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  37. ^ "How Former United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz Turned the Struggling Airline Around - A key piece of feedback from a steward helped Munoz quickly get to the root of the problem". August 15, 2023.
  38. ^ "Love Letter from Oscar Munoz". August 15, 2023.
  39. ^ "NEW BOOK ON UNITED AIRLINES BY EX-CEO OSCAR MUNOZ". April 10, 2023.
  40. ^ "Oscar Munoz on immigrant life story and leading United Airlines". The Washington Post. May 10, 2023.
  41. ^ "How Former United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz Turned the Struggling Airline Around - A key piece of feedback from a steward helped Munoz quickly get to the root of the problem". March 18, 2021.
  42. ^ "Former United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz on workplace culture and adapting to change". CBS News. March 16, 2023.
  43. ^ "9 Surprising Books on the Future of Business". June 12, 2023.
  44. ^ "Oscar Munoz - Executive Chairman of United Airlines". July 13, 2023.
  45. ^ "Interview: Leadership with Oscar Munoz, Former United Airlines CEO". June 17, 2023.
  46. ^ "Former United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz on workplace culture and adapting to change". CBS News. March 16, 2023.
  47. ^ "Former United CEO Oscar Munoz Shares Key Leadership Qualities And How He Manages Societal Turbulence". YouTube.
  48. ^ "Former United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz on the One Choice All Leaders Face". April 30, 2023.
  49. ^ "Why apologizing takes a toll on workers, according to United Airlines' Oscar Munoz". May 2, 2023.
  50. ^ "Former United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz Talks About 'Turnaround Time'". YouTube.
  51. ^ "Former United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz rips US' air traffic control systems as 'most outdated'". Fox Business. May 4, 2023.
  52. ^ Canada, Hillary (May 2, 2023). "WSJ Future of Everything Festival Features Interviews With Eric Adams, Michael Kors and Naomi Watts". WSJ.
  53. ^ "How Former United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz Turned the Struggling Airline AroundA key piece of feedback from a steward helped Munoz quickly get to the root of the problem".
  54. ^ "Why CEOs are changing directions faster than ever". Business Insider. May 11, 2023.
  55. ^ "Former United CEO discusses how he rebuilt an airline". May 18, 2023.
  56. ^ "'Bloomberg Surveillance Simulcast' (05/15/23)". Bloomberg News. May 15, 2023.
  57. ^ "Salesforce Leadership".
  58. ^ "Oscar Munoz Former Executive Chairman & CEO".
  59. ^ "Oscar Munoz - Director at CBRE|ESI".
  60. ^ "DEFENSE BUSINESS BOARD" (PDF). October 2021.
  61. ^ "EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP".
  62. ^ "Oscar Munoz - Former Chairman and CEO of United Airlines".
  63. ^ "Oscar Munoz: Turnaround Time".
  64. ^ "Defense Business Board Relaunches After Pentagon Review". September 29, 2021.
  65. ^ "Business leader Oscar Munoz joins USC Board of Trustees". March 25, 2018.
  66. ^ "Board of Trustees".
  67. ^ Sanders, Topher (August 18, 2011). "Eugene Butler Middle School gets $1 million donation to help prevent dropouts". Florida Headline News. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  68. ^ "United Continental CEO Oscar Munoz Suffers Heart Attack". The Wall Street Journal. October 16, 2015. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
[edit]
Business positions
Preceded by
Michael Ward
 President of CSX Corporation
2015 		Succeeded by
Clarence Gooden
Preceded by CEO of United Continental Holdings
2015–2020 		Succeeded by
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