MLA Places Norman D. Finch Jr. as General Counsel at Illinois Tool Works

Hanover, MD (January 30, 2017) — Major, Lindsey & Africa (MLA), the world's leading legal search firm, today announced the placement of Norman D. Finch Jr. as senior vice president, general counsel and secretary at Illinois Tool Works (NYSE: ITW), based in Glenview, Illinois. ITW is a Fortune 200 global multi-industrial manufacturing leader with more than 50,000 employees and operations in 57 countries. The search was led by Paul Williams and Heather Fine of Major, Lindsey & Africa's In-House Practice Group, based in Chicago.

Norm will lead the legal function company-wide, serving as the primary legal advisor to the chief executive officer, the organization's senior management team and the board of directors. As a member of ITW's executive leadership team, Norm will share ownership and responsibility for the execution of ITW's enterprise strategy, as well as lead ITW's legal team.

"Norm's previous experience with a global manufacturing company overseeing a strategic plan made him an excellent fit with ITW's business needs, and his exceptional leadership, communication and team-building skills are a cultural match with ITW's decentralized environment," said Paul Williams.

Norm joins ITW from Sealed Air Corporation where he had been vice president, general counsel and secretary since 2013. From 2005 to 2013, he was at Zimmer Holdings Inc. (now Zimmer Biomet), where he was promoted four times in less than five years culminating in the vice president, associate general counsel and chief compliance officer role.

Originally in private practice, Norm spent 14 years at Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. (now Norton Rose Fulbright). Norm holds a J.D. from Southern Methodist University School of Law, where he was a member of the Order of the Coif. He also has a Master of Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary and a B.A. from Texas Tech University where he graduated summa cum laude.