Fred Smith
Nobody delivers like the founder, chairman, and CEO of FedEx Corporation. Smith’s $65 billion global transportation, business services, and logistics company is a vital economic engine in the Memphis region and has a worldwide impact. Since founding FedEx in 1971, he has advocated for regulatory reform, free trade, open skies agreements for aviation worldwide, and a national energy policy that includes vehicle energy-efficiency standards. FedEx is the region’s largest employer, with a local workforce of more than 30,000 and a global workforce of more than 420,000. FedEx has made a $1 billion capital investment to modernize its Memphis hub. Smith graduated from Yale in 1966 and was in the U.S. Marines from 1966 to 1970. He has been named to the Aviation Hall of Fame and holds the Circle of Honor Award from the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation. He serves on numerous business and charitable boards and councils. FedEx is regularly included among “World’s Most Admired Companies” and “100 Best Companies to Work For.”
