CN to announce new CEO in January; Vena drops out of consideration

CN expects to announce in January the selection of a new chief executive officer to succeed President and CEO JJ Ruest.

The CN board’s search committee, with the assistance of Korn Ferry, has identified and continues to interview a number of candidates. In October, Ruest announced his plans to retire in January 2022, or at a later time when a successor is named.

As part of its search process, the committee conducted “multiple rounds of interviews” with former CN executive Jim Vena and conducted due diligence with respect to his candidacy.

However, last night Vena notified the board that he’s no longer interested in pursuing the role and has withdrawn from the process, CN officials said in a press release.

Vena had been the choice of major shareholder TCI Fund Management, which earlier this year challenged CN’s proposed acquisition of Kansas City Southern.

KCS has since been acquired by Canadian Pacific, and KCS shares have been placed in a voting trust until the Surface Transportation Board decides whether to approve its merger with Canadian Pacific.