On May 28, 2013, the Virginia Port Authority board approved the merger of the Virginia Port Authority with Virginia International Terminals, (VIT) Inc. In the restructuring, Brother Tom Capozzi, Zeta Pi/Old Dominion 1989, vice president of global sales at marketing at VIT, will become the chief commercial officer of the organization.
The Virginia Port Authority is an independent agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia that reports to the Virginia Secretary of Transportation. The goal of the Virginia Port Authority (VPA) is to establish The Port of Virginia as the leading ocean container terminal complex on the US East Coast.
In the new organization, VIT will become a company that is wholly controlled by the Port Authority. VIT’s board will only serve in the capacity of an advisory panel. The organization will be led by an executive director and CEI who will oversee five company officers – chief financial officer, chief operations officer, chief human resources officer, chief public affairs officer and the chief commercial officer.
“I was selected based upon my previous experience serving in sales and marketing roles for both the Virginia Port Authority and Virginia International Terminals, Inc. as well as my industry experience working for two of our ocean carrier customers, Evergreen and "K" Line,” said Capozzi. “In this new position, I will be charged with integrating all commercial activity for the Virginia Port Authority and its terminal operator, Virginia International Terminals, LLC. This will include sales, marketing, branding, advertising, pricing, economic development, customer service, media relations, etc.,” he added.
The board also voted to hire a consulting firm to help in the selection of the new executive director and CEO. Announcements about who will fill other positions will be made at a later date.
“Under the new structure, there will be one governing board with the Board of Commissioners of the Virginia Port Authority. The new structure should provide benefits in a more consistent message to our customers, elimination of duplicative services, and a more streamlined governing structure,” said Capozzi.
After graduating from Old Dominion, Brother Capozzi served on the International Headquarters staff as a Leadership and Education Consultant. Following his time on staff, he worked for Evergreen and “K” Line America, Inc. in addition to VIT and Virginia Port Authority.
Brother Capozzi has remained active with Theta Chi serving on the Zeta Pi alumni board and as a past chapter advisor. He has also been very active promoting the Zeta Pi alumni golf tournament, which had 100 players last fall.