Thomas Handley Biography and Net Worth

Mr. Handley joined the H.B. Fuller Company Board of Directors in 2010 and serves as the Chair of the Audit Committee and a member of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee. He brings more than 30 years of management and board experience in specialty chemicals and 40 years of executive leadership experience across financial management, operations, and enterprise strategy. Mr. Handley has deep expertise spanning capital markets, general management, strategic planning, corporate governance, marketing, mergers and acquisitions, and global business operations.

In particular, Mr. Handley’s tenure at Ecolab (NYSE: ECL), a global specialty chemicals company with a B2B operating model, manufacturing footprint, and customer base closely paralleling H.B. Fuller’s, provides the Board with a peer-level understanding of the company’s core business. His earlier career at Procter & Gamble adds a complementary customer perspective, reflecting the priorities of large consumer goods manufacturers that are among the primary end users of H.B. Fuller’s packaging and hygiene adhesives.

Mr. Handley currently serves as Senior Advisor for Cascade Asset Management Company, which manages the financial assets of William H. Gates III and The Gates Foundation Trust. In this role, he brings deep capital markets experience and an investor perspective to the management of large institutional assets. Previously, he was the Chief Operating Officer for Cascade Asset Management from 2019 to 2023. Prior to that, he held multiple senior executive roles at Ecolab, Inc., including President and Chief Operating Officer, a position he held for almost seven years until his retirement in 2019. Mr. Handley was instrumental to Ecolab’s transformative acquisition of Nalco Holding Company and its integration. During his 19-year tenure as a key leader at Ecolab, the company’s stock increased sevenfold.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Handley spent 22 years at Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE: PG), where he held a range of senior management and marketing roles across the United States and international markets, including Mexico and Japan.

Mr. Handley currently serves on the Board of Directors for Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE: RSG) and Signature Aviation. He is a retired member of the Executive Board of the National Association of Manufacturers.

He holds an MBA from the University of Chicago and a bachelor’s in economics from Claremont McKenna College.