Executive Profile: Chris Viggiano

 

“I heard it said that God has gifted us with many talents in life. What we do with them is our gift back to God”

Chris Viggiano is the President and Chairman of the Board of GrayGlass.  He wears many hats every day from handling daily routine sales calls, marketing, finding and procuring new equipment, overseeing all finances, as well as guiding the company into new areas of business.

Chris took over the F. J. Gray & Company via a leveraged buyout from the founder, F.J. Gray’s Estate, in May 1985, with Bill O’Bryan Sr.  Bill O’Bryan Sr., Chris’ father-in-law, ran the F. J. Gray Company for Frank Gray from 1969, until his death in 1984. When Bill Sr. retired, Bill Jr. became Chris’ partner.   This was Chris’ opportunity to run his own business, while spending time with his growing family.

Prior to GrayGlass, Chris started as an Auditor at Arthur Anderson & Co. in 1975.  He worked in many industries including Manufacturing, Oil & Gas, and the Mergers and Acquisitions group, as a Manager until 1985.  Chris was hoping to maintain his contacts and public accounting knowledge, so when the opportunity was presented to join the Board of Directors of KCS energy, he took it in 1988.

From 1988-2006, Chris served on The Board of Directors of KCS Energy and was the Chairman of the Audit Committee.  He also served on the Compensation Committee, the entire time until the organization merged with Petrohawk.

Since 2006, Chris has served on the Board of Directors of Petrohawk Energy Corp. a NYSE publicly traded company with over $7 billion market cap and he serves on their Compensation Committee as well as the Audit Committee. Other Board appointments include serving on the Board of Directors of a privately held Optics company in Rochester New York, Sydor Optics, since 2005.

Chris remains dedicated to his community.  He coached his four children in four different sports spanning over 21 years. He was the president of his town’s Little League and served on its Board for over 20 years and was voted the town’s Man of the Year in 2008 for getting their only tournament level field built.   He was also President and served on the Board of his Church’s Youth Advisory Council that ran six different sports programs. Through the County’s CYO organization, he was awarded his church’s “Role Model of the Year Award” in 1993.

A few of the many great accomplishments at GrayGlass include winning the coveted Corning Glass Distributor award, the “Rutledge Award,” for the most significant increase in business among its distributors in 1986, the first full year Chris had control of the company. As a new owner, he was committed to growing the company and investing in new equipment and facilities.   Under Chris’ direction, the company has grown from a small 15-person 20,000 square foot facility to its current 48-person 62,000 square foot facility.

Chris graduated in1975, Magna Cum Laude, with a BA in Math and Accounting from Lycoming College in Williamsport, PA.  He is a CPA in New Jersey and New York since 1978, and is still a member of both Societies of CPA’s. 

Chris and his lovely wife, Nancy, of 34 years, have four children Casey, Chris, Callie and Conner. Chris enjoys diving, fishing, skiing and golf, but his favorite activity of all, remains having dinner with his wife and family, as they become incredible adults.