Canadian Railroads > Jim Vena, 40 year CN veteran, named UP Chief Operating Officer

Jim Vena, who is well known at Canadian National,
has been named Chief Operating Officer of Union Pacific.

His CN profile says that he hired on CN as brakeman in Jasper, Alberta in 1977.
He worked his way up,
as conductor, locomotive engineer,
later in numerous senior positions in operations, marketing and sales,
and finally Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President
during the time Claude Mongeau was President.

He left the company in June, 2016,
at the time Mr. Mongeau also left the company.

He most recently lists Scottsdale, Arizona, as his residence.

Does anyone have recollections of this fellow at CN?


https://www.up.com/media/releases/190107-jim-vena.htm

https://www.cn.ca/en/news/2013/02/jim-vena-appointed-cn-executive-vice-president-and-chief-operating-officer/




 

Now, we have Hunter acolytes at the highest levels of CP, CSX, UP;
Keith Creel at CP, Jim Vena at UP, Jim Foote and Edmond Harris at CSX.

Do these guys get along with each other ?
Must make the potential for future collaboration / mergers
more likely if these guys work together.

Marcus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Now, we have Hunter acolytes at the highest levels
> of CP, CSX, UP;
> Keith Creel at CP, Jim Vena at UP, Jim Foote and
> Edmond Harris at CSX.
>
> Do these guys get along with each other ?
> Must make the potential for future collaboration /
> mergers
> more likely if these guys work together.

The US Department of Justice and the US Federal Trade Commission may see things differently.
Think back to the attempted CN-BNSF merger that was dropped very quickly when the DOJ and FTC expressed anti trust concerns.

I would be interested to know if some of these guys even like each other.

Many times, a CEO will pick a favorite, and that guy's buddies do well. The people who didn't get anointed get paid off and retired. And their buddies.

Posted from Android

My career at CN ended the same year that EHH ‘retired’. Before Mr.Vena’s ascension. 

More than one person told me about his fist pounding, expletive deletive militaristic demeanour. So typical of that gang upstairs running CN back then. 

I think Vena was put in charge of the CN takeover of EJ&E?