Gale E. Klappa

Chairman of the Board — WEC Energy Group

Gale Klappa is chairman of the board of WEC Energy Group.

Based in Milwaukee, WEC Energy Group is one of the nation’s premier energy companies, serving nearly 4.7 million electric and natural gas customers in Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan and Minnesota.

Klappa has more than 40 years of experience working in the public utility industry, and more than 30 years at the senior executive level. With his extensive experience, Klappa leads the board with a deep understanding of the investment decisions and public policy issues facing large public companies.

Klappa joined Wisconsin Energy as president in April 2003. He was elected to the company’s board of directors in December 2003. From May 2004, Klappa served as chairman and chief executive officer of Wisconsin Energy and We Energies. Under his leadership, the company successfully completed its 2015 acquisition of Integrys Energy Group, at which time he assumed those same roles for WEC Energy Group.

Klappa served as non-executive chairman of WEC Energy Group after retiring as CEO in May 2016. In October 2017, Klappa resumed the role of chairman and chief executive officer to provide leadership and continuity following a medical setback that sidelined his successor. He returned to the non-executive chairman role in May 2024.

Before joining the company, Klappa held executive leadership roles at Southern Company, a public utility holding company based in Atlanta serving the southeastern United States. He served as executive vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer. Klappa also was chief strategic officer at Southern Company, North American group president of Southern Energy Inc., and president and CEO of South Western Electricity — Southern Company’s electric distribution utility in the United Kingdom. Before his assignment in the U.K., he was senior vice president of marketing for Georgia Power, Southern Company’s largest subsidiary.

Klappa is a 1972 graduate cum laude of the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UWM), with a bachelor’s degree in mass communications.

Klappa is a member of the board of directors of Associated Banc-Corp. He is co-chair of the Milwaukee 7 regional economic development initiative, and serves on the UWM School of Business Advisory Council. In addition, Klappa owns a minority interest in the Milwaukee Bucks National Basketball Association franchise.

Klappa previously served as a member of the board of directors for Joy Global Inc. from 2006 to 2017 and Badger Meter Inc. from 2010 to 2023. He also was chairman of the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (MMAC) from 2007 to 2009 and continued to serve on the Executive Committee through 2023.

He served as a director of the Edison Electric Institute for more than a decade and was a trustee for the Electric Power Research Institute from 2008 to 2015. He served as chairman of Nuclear Electric Insurance Limited from 2007 to 2010.

Klappa also has served in a number of leadership roles for organizations creating a brighter future for our communities. From 2006 to 2010, Klappa served on the board of directors of United Way of Greater Milwaukee and from 2010 to 2016, he was a director of the United Performing Arts Fund. He also was a member of the board of trustees of the Medical College of Wisconsin from 2006 to 2016.

Honors and Awards

In 2024, Klappa was honored with lifetime achievement awards from UWM and the National Association of Minority Contractors — Wisconsin. He was recognized for success in professional achievement; community involvement; advancement of UWM’s mission and support of minority contractors; giving back of time, talent and treasure; and encouraging and inspiring future leaders.
In 2023, Klappa was inducted into the Wisconsin Business Hall of Fame.
The Boy Scouts of America — Three Harbors Council — honored Klappa in 2022 with the Distinguished Citizen Award.
In 2021, he was named one of the 30 most inspiring leaders to watch by Silicon Review magazine.
Business Worldwide magazine named Klappa CEO of the Year — Electric and Natural Gas Industry for both 2016 and 2018, as well as Growth Strategy CEO of the Year — USA for 2018. In 2018, he was also named CEO of the Year by CEO Monthly Magazine for the Most Outstanding Energy Delivery Holding Company.
The Milwaukee Business Journal honored Klappa in 2017 with the Executive of the Year award.
In 2016 — for the sixth consecutive year — he was named to the All-America Executive Team by Institutional Investor magazine.
He was named 2013 Wisconsin Business Leader of the Year by the Harvard Business School Club of Wisconsin.
In 2012, Corporate Responsibility magazine named Klappa Responsible CEO of the Year for his commitment to transparency, accountability and customer satisfaction.
Electric Light & Power magazine named Klappa CEO of the Year in January 2012 — recognizing his role in executing the company’s Power the Future plan. This landmark plan added 50% more generating capacity to the company’s operating fleet while cutting emissions of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and mercury by 80%.
In 2011, Klappa received an honorary Doctor of Commercial Science degree from UWM in recognition of his support for UWM’s growth initiative, his leadership in helping to shape the economic future of southeast Wisconsin through the launch of the Milwaukee 7, and his extensive community involvement.