Michael Ali Joins Grainger as Chief Information Officer

Grainger (NYSE: GWW), a leading broad line supplier of maintenance, repair and operating (MRO) products serving businesses and institutions, today announced Dr. Michael Ali joined the company as senior VP and chief information officer (CIO).

He replaces Tim Ferrarell who assumes the new role of senior VP, Innovation and Continuous Improvement.

“Michael is a great addition to our team,” said Grainger chairman, president and CEO, Jim Ryan. “Beyond his IT expertise, Michael brings a strong global perspective to our organization. At the same time, I’m excited to have Tim take on the role of leading our innovation and continuous improvement efforts, both of which are critical to our continued success.”

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Ali has extensive global experience in information technology (IT). Most recently he was senior VP, Application Services and Project Management Office, at US Foods.

Previous to US Foods, he was CIO at Harman, where he led the upgrade of its SAP platform and implementation of a new eCommerce platform.

Michael Ali

Ali also was CIO at U.K.-based Jaguar Land Rover, transforming its IT organization to follow the Ford One-IT model, according to Grainger.

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With Grainger, Ali will lead the Enterprise Systems team in building flexible and scalable systems that will support the current and future needs of customers, suppliers and team members, and help drive growth for Grainger worldwide.

Ali has a PhD in Computer and Systems Engineering from Rensselaer, an MS in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University, and a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Princeton University.

Ali (pictured above) is based in Lake Forest, reporting to Jim Ryan.