ECONOMY
JON L. THOMPSON RETIRES AS PRESIDENT EXXONMOBIL EXPLORATION COMPANY
Mr. J.L. (Johnny) Hall, currently vice president, Geoscience, ExxonMobil Development Company, will become an executive vice president, ExxonMobil Exploration Company, effective June 1, 2004.
A native of Jacksonville, Florida, Mr. Thompson, 65, assumed his current position, which includes worldwide responsibility for exploration, with the formation of ExxonMobil Exploration Company in December 1999. Before the merger of Exxon and Mobil in November 1999, Mr. Thompson had the same responsibilities as president of Exxon Exploration Company since 1991.
After receiving a master's degree in geology from the University of Florida in 1962, Mr. Thompson joined Exxon Company, USA (EUSA) as a geologist in New Orleans. After assignments in Louisiana and California, Mr. Thompson was named project leader of the North Rocky Mountain region of EUSA's Western Exploration Division and then of the Gulf of Alaska region of EUSA's Offshore Division.
He transferred to Esso Europe, London, in 1976 as exploration operations manager and in 1978 was named exploration operations manager for Esso Exploration and Production, U.K. Mr. Thompson returned to EUSA in 1979 as assistant division manager, Southwestern Exploration Division, in Midland, Texas, and was named division manager of the Southeastern Division in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1981. He accepted an assignment as assistant manager of Corporate Planning in EUSA Headquarters in 1984, and in 1985 became exploration technical assessment manager in Exxon Corporation. With the 1986 formation of Exxon Company, International, to manage Exxon's oil and gas business outside North America, Mr. Thompson was named exploration department manager and later vice president, Exploration.
Mr. Thompson and his wife, Beverly, are the parents of two daughters and one son.
Tim Cejka, 52, was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and is married with two daughters.
He began his career with Exxon in 1975 as an exploration geophysicist for offshore California. He also served as production geologist in New Orleans, Louisiana. His first supervisory position was in Exploration in the onshore Gulf Coast of the U.S. He moved to a project management position for the Offshore Central Gulf of Mexico.
Mr. Cejka was promoted to geological and geophysical manager of the Gulf of Mexico. Then he moved on to positions in strategic planning and as advisor to the upstream director for Exxon Corporation. He served three years as the exploration advisor for Exxon's Netherlands and German affiliates.
In 1993, when Exxon created the Exxon Ventures (CIS) company, he became the vice president of Exploration. He traveled extensively in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russian and Turkmenistan. Post the merger of Exxon and Mobil, he became vice president for the Caspian/Middle East region for ExxonMobil Exploration Company.
In 2001, he assumed his current position as executive vice president for ExxonMobil Exploration with responsibilities for exploration and geoscience in Europe, Russia, Middle East and the Caspian Region.
