Opening Keynote Speaker
About the Speaker

Tom Fanning
Retired CEO
Southern Company
Thomas A. (Tom) Fanning is the recently retired chairman, president and CEO of Southern Company, America’s premiere energy company serving 9 million customers nationwide. Fanning worked for Southern Company for more than four decades and held 15 different positions in eight different business units, including numerous officer positions in the areas of finance, strategy, international business development and technology.
For nearly a decade, Fanning served as co-chair of the Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council, the principal liaison between the federal government and the electric power sector to protect the electric grid from national security threats, including cyber and physical terrorism as well as natural disasters. Recognized as a leading authority in cybersecurity, he served both on the Cyberspace Solarium Commission and as chair of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s Cybersecurity Advisory Committee providing recommendations on the development and refinement of the nation’s cybersecurity programs and policies.
Fanning sits on the advisory board of the Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business, the board of trustees of the Georgia Tech Foundation and chairs the board of directors of the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations. He also serves on the board of directors of Vulcan Materials Company. Fanning also is a member of the international advisory board of the Atlantic Council and the American Energy Innovation Council. From 2012-2018, Fanning served on the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and is a past chairman. He is also a past chairman of the Conference of Chairs of the Federal Reserve Banks and the Edison Electric Institute (EEI). Fanning earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees and was awarded an honorary Doctor of Philosophy degree from Georgia Tech. He lives in Atlanta with his wife, Sarah, and has four children.