Leadership Shake-Up
Ball Corporation (NYSE: BALL) has named two senior executives to lead its principal beverage packaging divisions, effective immediately for one appointment and January 2027 for the other. Carey Causey becomes senior vice president and president, Beverage Packaging North and Central America, succeeding Kathleen Pitre, while Scott Vail takes the same rank as president, Beverage Packaging Europe, Middle East and Africa, replacing Mandy Glew, who is retiring. The company, which posted $13.16 billion in net sales in 2025 and employs 16,000 people across more than 65 facilities worldwide, said both departures are unrelated to any disagreement with management.
The dual appointment is a meaningful structural shift for the world's largest aluminum can maker. North and Central America and EMEA are Ball's two most commercially significant geographies, together accounting for the bulk of the company's volume and customer relationships in the beverage, personal care and household-products segments. Chief Executive Officer Ron Lewis said both incoming leaders bring "proven track records, deep commercial and operational experience" aligned with the company's priorities of disciplined execution and sustainable value creation.
Executive Profiles
Causey is a Ball veteran of more than a decade. She joined in 2014 and most recently served as senior vice president and chief growth officer since 2024, a role that followed her tenure as president of Beverage Packaging EMEA from 2021 to 2024. Her background spans commercial operations, marketing, strategy and business development across North and Central America, South America and EMEA. Before Ball, she held sales, marketing, engineering and manufacturing roles at MWV, The Mosaic Company and Cargill. Vail joined Ball in 2021 as vice president of Operations for Beverage Packaging North and Central America and subsequently led the global rollout of Ball Operational Excellence before being elevated to senior vice president and chief supply chain and operations officer in 2025. Prior to Ball, he served as president of Metal Container Corporation and held senior engineering and operations roles at AB InBev — experience directly relevant to high-volume aluminum beverage can manufacturing.
Industry Context
The leadership changes arrive as the aluminum packaging sector navigates competing pressures: sustained demand from craft beverage and ready-to-drink alcohol brands on one side, and margin scrutiny tied to aluminum commodity costs and energy prices on the other. Ball has been recalibrating its footprint following the divestiture of its aerospace business in 2024, sharpening its focus on packaging. Placing an executive with EMEA operating experience — Causey — in North America, and a supply-chain specialist — Vail — in EMEA reflects a deliberate cross-pollination of operational discipline and commercial acumen. Operators and brand owners tracking aluminum can supply chain dynamics will watch whether the new leadership accelerates capacity decisions or contract renegotiations in either region. For beverage manufacturers assessing packaging partners, Ball's sustainability commitments and scale remain central selling points, and continuity of customer relationships will be a near-term priority for both incoming presidents.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
