J.B. Hunt Says CIO Kay Lewis Will Retire Dec. 31

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. of Lowell has announced the retirement of executive vice president and chief information officer Kay Lewis, effective Dec. 31.

Her successor, effective Jan. 1, is Stuart Scott, the chief information officer of Boston-based Tempur-Sealy International since October 2009.

Lewis, 52, started with J.B. Hunt in 1988 as a systems engineer manager and was promoted to her current job in August 1999, helping build and expand the company’s IT department, making J.B. Hunt an industry leader in IT.

She noted that when she began with the company, J.B. Hunt’s IT group was made up of about 25 employees. The group now has about 450 employees working at its Lowell headquarters, with a number of other outsourced employees in India and the Philippines.

“This company has been my home for almost three decades, and I have built relationships that will last me for years to come,” Lewis said in a news release. “The unlimited possibilities available at J.B. Hunt propelled my success, and I have no doubt that Stuart will find this role invigorating, challenging and more rewarding than he could ever imagine. He is the right person for the job, and I am pleased that I got to play a role in his appointment.”

Lewis will be available as an advisor to the company during Scott’s transition.

“Kay has done a tremendous job building the foundation of an impressive IT organization in the logistics industry,” president and CEO John Roberts said. “We wish her the best in her retirement. She is an innovator who created a top-notch IT department at J.B. Hunt. We are confident Stuart will further expand our technological capabilities and live up to the high standards Kay embodies.”

Lewis was recognized by the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal in 2001 as a member of the Forty Under 40 class, and again in 2015 as a recipient of the inaugural C-Suite Awards.

She joked that she had “been threatening” to retire for a few years, but Robert had always been successful in persuading her to stay.

“I love Hunt and the people here and feel very fortunate to have spent my career here, but personally, there’s a lot of things I’ve not had the time to do that I want to do,” Lewis said.

Lewis said her immediate retirement schedule will be dominated by travel, including a trip to visit a niece who is studying in South Korea.

Lewis said she will also continue to be a strong advocate for STEM education and careers, especially for girls and women.

“There are so many great jobs in this area, and there is a no reason for kids to [graduate] from school and not have a focus on an area where people need to be hired,” she said.