The Toro Company Elects Richard M. Olson Chief Executive Officer
The Toro Company’s board of directors has elected Richard M. Olson to the position of president and chief executive officer, effective November 1, 2016. Olson, a 30-year veteran of the company, has served as Toro’s president and chief operating officer since September 2015 and was elected to the company’s board of directors in January of this year. Toro’s current chairman and chief executive officer, Michael J. Hoffman, will continue to serve as chairman of the board.
Olson joined Toro in 1986 as a manufacturing process engineer. He has held various positions in operations and engineering including manager of advanced manufacturing, commercial engineering program manager, director of Shakopee plant operations, and managing director of northern manufacturing operations. In 2010, he was named general manager of Exmark and was appointed vice president, Exmark in 2012. The following year Olson was named vice president, international business before being elected group vice president, international business, micro-irrigation business and distributor development in June 2014.
Olson holds a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial technology from Iowa State University and an MBA from the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management. He serves on the boards of The Toro Foundation and the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute.
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