Fastenal CSO Watts Promoted to President, Florness Remains CEO

Alongside reporting its 2024 second quarter financials on July 12, Fastenal reported a change in its company leadership.

The fasteners and construction supplies distributor said that Jeff Watts — a 28-year company veteran and its Chief Sales Officer — has been promoted to company President, effective Aug. 1.

Current President Dan Florness will voluntarily vacate that position on that date, but will continue as Fastenal CEO and as a company board member. Watts will also continue in his CSO role, which he’s held since May 2023, where his responsibilities cover establishing priorities, setting goals and providing guidance and oversight for Fastenal’s global sales activities.

Watts’ company tenure began in 1996 when he joined the company as a part-time branch employee. He served in a variety of sales roles on the district and local market levels. He was Fastenal’s Eastern Canada Regional VP from 2005-2015 and EVP of International Sales from 2015-2023 before his current CSO role.

“I am deeply honored and grateful for the opportunity to serve as President of Fastenal,” Watts said in a news release. “After 28 years of witnessing our tremendous growth and innovation, I look forward to leading our team to continue delivering outstanding value to our customers and stakeholders.”

Fastenal made frequent appearances on MDM’s 2024 Top Distributors Lists, charting at No. 6 for Industrial Supplies, No. 5 for MRO, No. 7 for Fluid Power, No. 1 for Fasteners, No. 2 for Safety, No. 10 for JanSan/Packaging/Disposables and No. 22 for Electrical.

“Fastenal operates with a simple style: find great people, ask them to join, and give them a reason to stay,” Florness added. “We also operate with four simple values: ambition, innovation, integrity, and teamwork. Jeff adds two more, humility and resiliency. Jeff joined Fastenal when our Canadian expansion was just starting. He learned from the perspective of direct customer engagement, and continued to push our success across the globe. I believe our customers, employees, and shareholders will be well served by his leadership. Go Blue!”

Fastenal was featured in MDM’s recent “Big Pivot” Case study, which was published in December 2023 and is available here in the MDM Store.

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