In 2019, Tom Coler was named to the newly created role of vice president of finance for the health, hygiene, and consumables (HHC) segment of St. Paul-based H.B. Fuller, part of a reorganization designed to drive growth and efficiency. Coler built a new global finance team to support the HHC segment, which includes 2,000-plus employees and 33 manufacturing locations and generated $1.3 billion in revenue in 2019.

When Covid-19 hit, Coler and other company leaders quickly adapted. Despite the challenging market environment, the HHC segment recorded strong organic growth and double-digit profit improvement.