POWERGRAMS

4 LEADERSHIP Crosswhite spent the first 17 years of his career as a lawyer with Balch & Bingham. the last to leave." or as Mundy puts it: "he'd already been working several hours before the rest of us stumbled in there and had our coffee." Mundy, whom Crosswhite describes as a mentor, says one of Crosswhite's best talents is his preparation. "if you go into a meeting with him, you had better be ready." John Hudson, vice president of Public Relations, says Crosswhite impressed him with "his ability to convert complex ideas and concepts into information that easily could be understood." "i saw that ability quite often when he would take the time to explain complicated regulatory decisions to the public relations team as we were preparing to talk to media outlets," hudson says. Birmingham division Vice President Bobbie Knight says working with Crosswhite is easy. "he's a good listener and he seeks to understand," says Knight, who was the vice president for Public Relations when Crosswhite was in charge of external Affairs. "i was always confident that he supported me and my co-workers and had a genuine concern for this company and its employees." Smith describes Crosswhite as smart, wise, a quick learner, calm, thoughtful and confident. "there's no question he's willing to make the tough calls," he says. with Crosswhite, what you see is what you get, according to Smith. "he's very transparent," Smith says. "he has a self-deprecating kind of way about him that invites diversity of thought, and acceptance that people can communicate and weigh in with him." Crosswhite says he wants employees to feel comfortable with him and know that he is accessible. "if there's some way i can help them in their job, i want them to reach out to me, whether they stop by the 18th floor or they send me an email or they call me. i want them to know they can reach me." when Crosswhite talks about Alabama Power employees, he raves. of his management team, he says: "they are the best there is." on employees in general: "i think they're the absolute greatest." on union employees: "the company and the Brotherhood have been working closely together for many years, and that relationship could hardly be better." And on the company: "it is the best company i know of, it really is. "when i think about the future for Alabama Power, i'm really excited," Crosswhite says. "the company is in a great position, but it's going to get even better. i think the best is yet to come." By Bob Blalock mark crossWHite timeline 1984 – graduates from the university of alabama in Huntsville with a degree in history. 1987 – earns Juris Doctor degree from the university of alabama school of law and begins working at Balch & Bingham law firm. 2004 – becomes senior vice president and general counsel for southern company Generation. 2006 – becomes senior vice president and general counsel for alabama Power. 2008 – becomes executive vice president of external affairs for alabama Power. 2011 – becomes president and ceo of Gulf Power. 2012 – becomes chief operating officer of southern company. Feb. 11, 2014 – chosen president and chief executive officer of alabama Power.

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