Newpark Resources Promotes Matthew Lanigan as part of CEO Succession Plan

Newpark Resources Inc. recently unveiled CEO succession plans that included the promotion of Matthew Lanigan to the position of president and COO, effective Sept. 1.

The Woodlands, Texas-based company announced the plans in an Aug. 23 release disclosing that Paul Howes, president and CEO, intends to retire on Feb. 28, 2022 after 15 years at the helm, and be succeeded at such time by Lanigan, the current president of Newpark’s Industrial Solutions operating segment.

Lanigan, 50, joined Newpark in April 2016. Previously, he had various executive positions for GE Capital Corp. and spent his early career with Exxon Mobil as a drilling and completions engineer and an offshore production engineer and marketer for crude and LPG.

Commenting on Lanigan promotion, Newpark Chairman Tony Best said the board had thoroughly evaluated several highly qualified candidates over the past year, all of whom possessed many of the skills they were looking for in a CEO. However, according to Best, it was Lannigan who had a “unique combination of critical attributes that made him an excellent choice.”

“He has a proven track record, clear strategic vision and global insight, unmatched operational acumen, and a deep understanding of our business.  ...  We are confident that Matthew and the rest of our very talented senior management team will continue to execute our strategy and achieve long-term success,” he said in the release.

Effective concurrently with Lanigan’s promotion to the position of president and COO of Newpark on Sept. 1, and Lori Briggs, the current vice president of marketing for Newpark Industrial Solutions, will be promoted to the position of president of the Newpark Industrial Solutions operating segment.  

Briggs, 49, joined Newpark in October 2017 as senior director of business transformation  and integration and was promoted to the position of vice president of marketing for Newpark Industrial Services in January 2021. Previously, she served as a global pricing leader in Houston for GE Oil and Gas, an energy subsidiary of General Electric, which she had assumed after previously holding various management positions in marketing, commercial, and finance for GE Capital.