Randell McShepard (LC 2003)
RPM International Inc. & Rid-All Green Partnership
Randell McShepard is currently employed as the Vice President of Public Affairs and Chief Talent Officer for RPM International Inc., a $7.2 billion-dollar chemical coatings/paint company headquartered in Medina, Ohio. In this post, he is responsible for managing external and governmental affairs for the company. His duties also include leading the corporate philanthropy program, facilitating corporate purchasing initiatives and coordinating executive leadership development activities and succession planning for the company’s top 350 executives. Prior to joining RPM, Randell worked in nonprofit management positions focused on workforce development, economic development, community service and civic engagement.
An active community and civic leader, Mr. McShepard is currently serving on several boards in Northeast Ohio including The Cleveland Foundation, Destination Cleveland and Citimark Capital, LLC. He is Co-Founder and Chairman of PolicyBridge, a public policy think tank serving the Northeast Ohio region since 2004. In May of 2015, he was the first African American elected President of The Union Club of Cleveland, a prestigious business and social club that has been home to the region’s corporate and civic leadership since 1872. He is also the Co-Founder of the Rid-All Green Partnership, a thriving urban farm in Cleveland’s Lower Kinsman neighborhood that farm raises tilapia fish, grows organic vegetables, produces compost soil and leads environmental stewardship efforts.
Mr. McShepard’s previous community/civic leadership roles have included: Board Member of the George Gund Foundation; Chairman of the Manufacturing Advocacy Council of the National Association of Manufacturers; Chairman of the Cleveland/Cuyahoga County Workforce Investment Board; Chairman of the Sisters of Charity Foundation; Vice-Chairman of the Fund for Our Economic Future and Vice-Chairman of Business Volunteers Unlimited. He also served on the Executive Committee for the Cuyahoga County Government Reform transition in 2010.
Randell was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio and graduated from Baldwin-Wallace University (BA) and Cleveland State University (MS). Among his many honors, Mr. McShepard was inducted into the John F. Kennedy High School Hall of Fame, recognized as a Distinguished Alumnus of Cleveland State University, and bestowed a Doctor of Humane Letters Honorary Degree from both Baldwin Wallace University and Cuyahoga Community College in 2022. He was also recognized as “Black Professional of the Year” by the Black Professionals Association in 2011 and received the 2017 “Humanitarian Award” from the Diversity Center of Northeast Ohio. In 2019, he was honored as a “C-Suite Champion” by Crain’s Cleveland. He is a graduate of Leadership Cleveland and remains active at his home church, St. James AME in Cleveland, where he serves as Chairman of the Steward Board.
Randell and his wife Gail reside in Beachwood, Ohio and have three children.