| Management |
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David VieauPresident and CEO -
David Vieau is the President and Chief Executive Officer of A123 Systems [NASDAQ: AONE], which is one of the world's leading suppliers of high-power lithium ion batteries, designed to deliver a new combination of battery power, safety and life. The company's breakthrough technology, innovative multinational manufacturing model, and experienced executives are providing the power to change the game for today's Transportation, Electrical Grid Services and Portable Power manufacturers.
Mr. Vieau brings more than thirty years of experience and leadership in developing rapid-growth technology and component businesses. Applying his expertise to A123 Systems, Mr. Vieau has led the expansion of A123 from its initial creation to more than 1,600 employees. Under his leadership, the company has received nearly $350 million in private financing and $349 million in government grants and loans. Most recently, he led the company through its initial public offering in September of 2009.
Prior to A123 Systems, Mr. Vieau held corporate officer positions at American Power Conversion [NASDAQ: APCC], serving as VP of Marketing and VP of Worldwide Business Development. During his nine years at APC, Mr. Vieau helped grow the company from $50MM to $1.5B, becoming the world leader in power protection for IT markets and employing 6,000 globally.
Mr. Vieau earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Syracuse University in 1972. -
Dr. Yet-Ming ChiangFounder -
Dr. Yet-Ming Chiang, a co-founder of A123 Systems, is also a full professor in the Materials Science and Engineering Department at MIT. Dr. Chiang's research at MIT focuses on the design and synthesis of advanced materials, and the development of new devices enabled by material advances, including new energy storage and mechanical actuator technologies.
In 1987 he co-founded American Superconductor [NASDAQ: AMSC]. He has published widely in materials science and engineering, and served on numerous government panels and editorial boards of journals in his field. Prof. Chiang has a SB Materials Science and Engineering, MIT, 1980 and a ScD Ceramics, MIT, 1985. -
Andrew ColeVP of Human Resources and Organizational Development -
Andrew Cole has served as our Vice President of Human Resources and Organizational Development since August 2008. From May 2008 to August 2008, Mr. Cole served as Global Seminis Human Resources Lead at the Monsanto Company, an agricultural company. From February 2007 to February 2008, Mr. Cole served as Senior Vice President for Human Resources at The Power and Cooling Division of Schneider Electric AS, or Schneider Electric, an energy management company.
Prior to this role, Mr. Cole served as the Executive Vice President for Human Resources and Organizational Development at American Power Conversion Corp., or APC, an energy management company, from April 2003 until the acquisition of APC by Schneider Electric in February 2007. Mr. Cole joined APC in 1999 and held the role of Director of Human Resources in EMEA prior to becoming the Executive Vice President. Mr. Cole holds a B.A. and an M.S.M from Regis University, Colorado. -
Jason ForcierVP of Automotive Solutions Group -
Jason Forcier has served as Vice President of our Automotive Solutions Group since August 2009. Prior to A123 Systems Mr. Forcier was named VP and GM of Lear's Global electronics business in August, 2008.
Mr. Forcier served as regional president, automotive electronics for Robert Bosch LLC since April of 2007. In this position, Forcier was responsible for operations of Bosch's North American automotive electronics business.
He previously held the position of president and CEO of ETAS, Inc., a Bosch subsidiary. Mr. Forcier joined ETAS in 1997, where he was manager of engineering service. He has held various other assignments at ETAS, including a product line manager, manager of customer value teams and vice president of automotive embedded control tools.
Prior to joining ETAS, Mr. Forcier worked in marketing at DSP Technologies and as a systems engineer at Delphi Automotive.
Mr. Forcier earned his bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the GMI Engineering & Management Institute (now Kettering University) and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Michigan. He has been a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers since 1990 and has participated in two previous panels at the SAE AVL Theater. Additionally, he has participated in A World in Motion, sponsored by the SAE Foundation. -
Louis GolatoVP of Operations -
Louis Golato brings to the company more than 30 years of leadership experience in operations and manufacturing, with proven ability in team building and achieving manufacturing excellence in safety, yields, cycle time and costs.
Prior to joining A123 Systems, Mr. Golato held various executive positions with Texas Instruments, Sipex Corporation, Digital Equipment Corporation, National Semiconductor and Micro Components. Louis holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Bryant College. -
Robert J. JohnsonVP of Energy Solutions Group -
Robert Johnson is responsible for A123 Systems' Energy Solutions Group. Mr. Johnson brings over 15 years of leadership and expertise in power, cooling, and management solutions.
Prior to A123 Systems, Mr. Johnson served as Senior Vice President and President of North America at APC-MGE, a global provider of Critical Power & Cooling Services. Mr. Johnson joined APC in February 1997, when APC acquired the software management company he founded, Systems Enhancement Corporation (SEC). Upon joining APC, Mr. Johnson became General Manager of this group and eventually served as President and Chief Executive Officer of APC, prior to its acquisition by Schneider Electric for $6Bn which combined its industry leadership with that of MGE UPS SYSTEMS. -
Eric PyensonVP & General Counsel -
Eric Pyenson brings over 20 years of legal, business development, and international experience in the technology space to A123 Systems. Prior to his legal and business career, he worked for the U.S. government in Washington, DC and overseas, focusing on counterterrorism.
Before joining A123, Mr. Pyenson established the in-house legal functions at several Boston-area software start-ups, including Authoria, Excara and Open Market, where he helped lead that company's successful IPO in May 1996. Mr. Pyenson has also served on the legal staff of Bull HN Information Systems, Inc. and was in private practice at the Boston law firms of Palmer & Dodge and Lucash, Gesmer & Updegrove.
Mr. Pyenson received his B.A. degree from Williams College, an M.A. degree in international relations from the University of Sussex, England and his J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law, during which time he served as a clerk to Judge William G. Young of the United States District Court in Boston. -
Dr. Bart RileyFounder, CTO, and VP of R&D -
Dr. Bart Riley has more than fifteen years of experience in technology development and commercialization in the advanced materials, portable power and superconductor industries.
Prior to co-founding A123 Systems, Dr. Riley held a number of key development and management positions over an 11-year career at American Superconductor. In his most recent role, he was Senior Manager in Corporate Engineering where he led Research for Superconductor Wire Products. Dr. Riley holds more than 40 patents and has published over 80 papersin the field of advanced materials. Dr. Riley has a Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Materials Science and Engineering from Cornell University and a B.A. in Physics and Geology from Middlebury College. -
Michael RubinoCFO & VP of Finance and Administration -
With more than twenty-five years of experience leading the financial and operational development of high-growth venture capital and publicly traded companies, Mr. Rubino brings a wealth of financial leadership and senior executive experience to A123 Systems. Mr. Rubino has extensive experience in managing venture capital funded companies through all stages of growth.
Prior to A123 Systems Mr. Rubino was the Chief Financial Officer of Maker Communications (acquired by Conexant Systems after a successful IPO), Agile Networks (acquired by Lucent Technologies), Ellacoya Networks, and Telephotonics (acquired by DuPont). -
Geoff TaylorVP of Quality -
Geoff Taylor has served as Vice President of Quality for A123 Systems since July 2010. Mr. Taylor brings over 29 years of international automotive experience to the company, with a proven record of meeting and exceeding OEM requirements. He has been directly responsible for leading global design and manufacturing teams as well as re-engineering product development processes and implementing lean production systems across a wide range of automotive products.
Prior to joining A123 Systems, Mr. Taylor held the position of Global Director of Quality for the Electronics Product Group of TRW from July 2008. Prior to this Mr. Taylor spent 27 years with Ford/Visteon in increasing roles of responsibility and leadership in manufacturing, design, and business, including international assignments in Canada, United Kingdom, and Portugal.
Mr. Taylor holds a Masters in Engineering Management from Wayne State University in 1995, and a Bachelor of Applied Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Toronto in 1981.



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