2013: Chesapeake Names New CEO

On May 20, 2013 Chesapeake announced a new CEO, Robert Lawler from Anadarko Petroleum.

Robert Douglas Lawler, 46, was previously the senior vice president of international and deep-water operations for Houston-based Anadarko. He is familiar with Oklahoma, having worked for Kerr-McGee Corp. before its acquisition by Anadarko in 2006.

Lawler is Chesapeake's second CEO since its founding in 1989. Aubrey McClendon created Chesapeake and oversaw the company until his retirement April 1.

Lawler began work at Chesapeake June 17, 2013. He is a petroleum engineer with 25 years of experience in upstream exploration and production. He also has experience operating in Chesapeake's core areas of Pennsylvania, Louisiana and Texas.

"I am honored and excited to be joining Chesapeake Energy with its unparalleled asset portfolio, focused management team and very talented and dedicated employees," Lawler said in a statement. "There is signification value in Chesapeake's asset base and the growth potential of the company is tremendous. I look forward to accelerating momentum that the Chesapeake team has built to generate value for our shareholders in the years ahead."