Alexander & Baldwin retirement, promotions Alexander & Baldwin president and CEO Stanley Kuriyama has announced management changes that will facilitate a smooth transition of leadership upon the planned retirement of Norbert Buelsing, president of A&B Properties. Buelsing has served as
Alexander & Baldwin retirement, promotions
Alexander & Baldwin president and CEO Stanley Kuriyama has announced management changes that will facilitate a smooth transition of leadership upon the planned retirement of Norbert Buelsing, president of A&B Properties.
Buelsing has served as president since October 2008 and first joined A&B in 1990. He has not yet set a firm date for his retirement and has agreed to stay on while other transitions, described below, are implemented.
Kuriyama announced the following organizational changes:
Christopher Benjamin, currently senior VP, chief financial officer and treasurer of A&B and general manager of Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Co., will be promoted to president, A&B Land Group, reporting to Kuriyama. The Land Group includes A&B Properties and the company’s various agricultural businesses.
Rick Volner Jr., currently senior VP of agricultural operations at HC&S, will be promoted to general manager of HC&S and will continue to report to Benjamin. The promotion will be effective April 1.
To facilitate the replacement of Benjamin, the company has initiated a search with Russell Reynolds Associates, a global executive search firm. Buelsing’s retirement and Benjamin’s appointment to his new role will be effective upon the hiring of a CFO.
“Norb has been an invaluable contributor to A&B over the past 20 years, and deserves credit for growing the company’s outstanding commercial portfolio from just 16 properties in 1990 to 46 properties today, and building tremendous value for our shareholders in the process,” Kuriyama said.
“Under his leadership, A&B Properties has weathered the recent economic cycle remarkably well and has positioned itself for growth in the recovering economy. Chris Benjamin has served the company extremely well as our chief financial officer, and his success in the remarkable turnaround of HC&S this past year has led to this major expansion of his operating responsibilities,” Kuriyama continued.
“His effective leadership skills, strategic capabilities and knowledge of our agricultural businesses will allow the company to continue to exercise responsible stewardship over, and value creation from, our lands and I have no doubt he will be able to build upon the success we have achieved in our real estate business. Chris will also remain in charge of the company’s evaluation of renewable energy opportunities, which are of critical strategic importance to the future of HC&S.”
Benjamin commented on Volner’s promotion: “Rick has been an integral part of the transformation that has taken place at HC&S, leading the agricultural team that increased sugar production by 35 percent from 2009 to 2010. As a Maui native, he combines a profound understanding of and respect for the local community with his deep knowledge of sugar farming and milling operations. Rick’s family has had a long history of contributions to HC&S.
“Rick’s great grandparents worked for Maui Agricultural Company, a predecessor of HC&S, and both his grandparents worked at HC&S, where his grandmother retired after 46 years of service.”
Buelsing joined A&B Hawai‘i, which then was A&B’s property management and development and food products subsidiary, in 1990 as VP and was promoted to senior VP a year later. In 1997, he was named executive VP of A&B Properties. In 2008, he was named president of A&B Properties.
Before joining A&B, he was executive VP and COO for Chaney Brooks & Co., a Hawai‘i real estate firm, where he had a nine-year career.
Benjamin joined A&B in 2001 as director of corporate development and was promoted to VP in 2003. In 2004, he was named CFO and, in 2005, was promoted to senior VP. In 2006, he was named treasurer of A&B. In 2009, he was named general manager of HC&S and, in 2010, took on responsibility for overseeing A&B’s other agribusiness operations, including Kaua‘i Coffee Co.
Prior to joining A&B, Benjamin had worked for General Motors, Sony, Booz-Allen & Hamilton and Queen’s Health Systems.
Volner joined HC&S in 1997 as an agricultural engineer and has progressed through a series of roles, including farm manager, VP of farm operations and, most recently, senior VP of agricultural operations.
Prior to joining HC&S, Volner worked for the Honolulu Board of Water Supply for four years.
