Though he remains on the move, ExxonMobil’s Julius Bedford exudes a calm disposition. Because his father served in the Air Force, his family moved several times but ultimately settled in Los Angeles, which Bedford calls his hometown. At 12 he had his first job as a paperboy. Today, he has responsibility for managing the ExxonMobil lubricants facility in Port Allen—which takes up close to 80% of his time—along with another plant in Olathe, Kan. He started his career with Mobil and has 31 years under his belt in the industry. Along the way, he has managed plants in California, Oregon and Chicago. Yet he raves about his four years in Baton Rouge. You can check out the complete Q&A with Bedford here. The following is a sample:
What is your greatest professional accomplishment?
“Overseeing the planning and hosting of an ExxonMobil board of directors’ meeting in Port Allen. ExxonMobil is a global company, so this visit included CEOs from companies such as General Motors, Travelers Insurance, Nestlé and others. We had a chance to show these global opinion leaders all the community outreach we do in the Baton Rouge area. They loved hearing about how our company’s history and Baton Rouge’s history were intertwined for the last 100 years during their tour of downtown.”
