FINDLAY, Ohio — Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. has promoted Phil Kortokrax to senior vice president, global operations and procurement, and hired Whirlpool Corp. executive Christopher Ball to succeed him as senior vice president and president of North America Tire Operations.
Mr. Ball, a 15-year Whirlpool veteran, will be responsible for formulating and driving execution of strategic plans to grow Cooper's business within the dealer-distributor network as well as in new sales channels, Cooper said.
He will partner with the company's operations and technical teams in the U.S., which focus on the design and manufacture of tires in the firm's four tire plants, along with supply-chain operations.
His appointment is effective March 19.
Cooper President and CEO Brad Hughes said Mr. Ball is a "talented global executive with significant commercial experience and the energy and demonstrated leadership capabilities to help us achieve our strategic growth objectives."
Most recently, he was global vice president for Whirlpool's KitchenAid small appliance business and has held leadership positions in Whirlpool's Laundry business, both domestically and internationally.