Dow (NYSE: DOW) has appointed Karen S. Carter as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2026, making her the first woman to lead the global materials science company in its 126-year history. Current Chairman and CEO Jim Fitterling will transition to Executive Chairman of the Board on the same date, where he will focus on long-term strategy, governance, and key external relationships.
Carter, 55, has spent more than three decades at Dow and brings an exceptionally broad track record across multiple functions within the company. She most recently served as Chief Operating Officer, a role she assumed in December 2024 with responsibility for business and operational performance across all of Dow’s segments and key functional organisations. Prior to that, she led Dow’s Packaging and Specialty Plastics business, the company’s largest operating segment, from 2022 to 2024, and before that served as Chief Human Resources Officer and Chief Inclusion Officer from 2019 to 2022.
Fitterling, who became CEO in 2018 and Board Chair in 2020, oversaw one of the more complex chapters in the company’s history, including its separation from DowDuPont, the navigation of pandemic-era supply chain disruptions, and a sustained push to advance the company’s sustainability and decarbonisation commitments. He characterised the handover as the culmination of a deliberate, multi-year succession process conducted in close partnership with the Board.
As Executive Chairman, Fitterling will remain involved in strategic oversight while Carter takes charge of execution across Dow’s global enterprise. Independent Lead Director Richard Davis will continue in his role, providing additional governance continuity through the transition.
The appointment carries significance beyond the milestone of gender representation. Carter’s elevation from COO to CEO reflects a clear preference by the Dow board for an insider with deep operational credibility rather than a transformation mandate driven by an outside hire. Her familiarity with Dow’s customer relationships, manufacturing operations, and internal culture positions her to maintain execution momentum while the company continues navigating challenging conditions in chemical and materials markets globally.
