Abound Solar Names Craig Witsoe New CEO

Abound Solar, a leading manufacturer of low-cost, thin-film photovoltaic solar modules, has appointed Craig Witsoe president and chief executive officer of the company. Tom Tiller, current president and CEO, will become chairman of the board of directors. These changes will go into effect on Nov. 1.

Witsoe comes to Abound following three years as president and CEO of Lineage Power, now GE Power Electronics. Under Witsoe’s leadership, Lineage Power made significant gains in growth, profitability and customer satisfaction and was sold to GE Energy.

“We are thrilled to have a proven CEO like Craig join the Abound team,” said Tiller. “We have had some unexpected issues in our family, so I need to transition to a role with less day-to-day involvement, but I will continue to be actively involved in the strategic direction of Abound. Craig brings a strong history as a business leader, understands what a company needs to be successful and has the energy and commitment to take Abound to the next level. I have complete confidence in Craig and the rest of the Abound team to continue the rapid progress we have demonstrated over the past several years. Moreover, we recently completed a new private funding round of $50 million with current investors, so the timing for this change could not be better.”

“In the last couple of years, Abound has made great strides in evolving from a start-up company to a manufacturing company,” said Doug Schatz, chairman of Abound Solar. “With Craig’s strong track record at Lineage Power and General Electric, Abound will have the leadership at the CEO level to continue on its growth track as one of the leading solar module manufacturing companies. And with Tom becoming the chairman of the board, Abound’s focus and direction will have continuity,.” Schatz, who has been involved with Abound since the company’s early days, will remain on the board along with all current directors.

“I am looking forward to becoming the new president and CEO at Abound and working with Tom as our board chair,” said Witsoe. “Tom and the Abound team have done a great job of driving operating and technology improvements over the past two years. This momentum, customer focus and strong investor commitment will allow the Abound team to become a leading global solar module manufacturer. There are few opportunities out there that rival Abound and its future.”

Prior to Lineage Power, Witsoe was CEO at The Tyden Group, a manufacturer of product identity and security technology. Before that, he spent nearly 15 years with GE, holding leadership roles including CEO, Asia-Pacific for GE Lighting and president of GE Specialty Film and Sheet for GE Plastics. He received his B.S. degree from the University of Illinois, a M.S. degree from Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering and his M.B.A. from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management.