Public Director Philip K. Bell, CAE, is president of the Washington, DC-based Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA). Prior to leading SMA, Bell was director of external communications and public affairs for Gerdau North America based in Tampa, FL. Bell is also a trustee of the ASSP Foundation, the Society’s charitable arm, in his dual leadership role.
He is a 30-year industry veteran, who developed an interest in the steel industry and manufacturing in the late 1980s while working in maintenance and operations at Elementis Chromium in Corpus Christi, TX. He has held executive-level positions in operations, human resources and public affairs with Gerdau, the SGL Carbon Group, Qualitech Steel Corporation and Elementis Chromium.
Bell serves on the board of directors of the American Society of Association Executives and chairs its audit committee. He is a member of the National Association of Manufacturing Council of Manufacturing Associations' board of advisors and the Association of Iron & Steel Technology.
In his role at SMA, he counsels the U.S. government as a member of the Department of Commerce International Trade Advisory Committee on Steel, advising the Department of Commerce and Office of the United States Trade Representative on international-trade-related matters that benefit U.S. businesses, workers and the economy. He also serves on the board of trustees of Hamline University in St. Paul, MN.
Bell graduated from Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. He holds a master’s degree in Global Strategic Communications from the University of Florida. He and his wife Linda reside in Bethesda, MD, and Riverview, FL.