Suzette Long is a seasoned executive in the C-Suite of a Fortune 50 U.S. publicly traded company with revenue in 2018 of $54.7B. Caterpillar is the world’s leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and diesel- electric locomotives, and also provides financing and related services. She has extensive experience in the areas of strategy development and execution and leadership of a global team serving the needs of a global business.
Presently, she is the Chief Legal Officer, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Caterpillar Inc. She reports to the Chairman and CEO of Caterpillar and is one of eight members of Caterpillar’s Executive Office responsible for setting corporate wide strategy. Suzette is a trusted advisor to Caterpillar’s Board of Directors and Executive Office. She is responsible for leading the company’s Legal Services, Global Security and Global Government & Corporate Affairs Divisions. Suzette has extensive experience with conducting global business and strategically building effective teams across multiple cultural and language differences.
As the Chief Legal Officer, she is responsible for setting the strategy and vision for global legal, security and public policy matters and leads more than 650 employees serving a company of more than 100K employees. She is adept at facilitating business success and profitable growth by building and sustaining highly functioning teams focused on supporting the various needs of the business. In her role, she collaborates cross-functionally with multiple reporting and operating segments to develop and implement business practices, policies and procedures that support the company’s strategy and values.
Suzette is a member of the board of directors of the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, an advocate for civil justice reform in the U.S. and abroad. She is also a member of The Conference Board, Chief Legal Officers Council, a member-driven think tank.
Suzette first joined Caterpillar in 2004 as an attorney in the legal department. She has served in a number of senior corporate attorney positions for multiple business units and operations in markets around the world. In February 2017, Suzette was named the Interim General Counsel of Caterpillar and in August 2017, the Board elected her to Chief Legal Officer, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary. Prior to joining Caterpillar she was an attorney with Gallagher & Kennedy in Phoenix, AZ.
Suzette earned a Bachelor of Science and Juris Doctor from Arizona State University and a Master of Science in Toxicology from the University of Arizona. She has completed Caterpillar’s Executive Leadership Program through Stanford’s Graduate School of Business.