Ann-Marie Padgett joined Caterpillar in November 2010 to oversee the Asia Pacific portfolio. She is responsible for collaborating with Caterpillar business units with significant sales opportunity in Asia - particularly in China, India and ASEAN member countries - to understand and prioritize issues involving both transactional obstacles to trade and market development opportunities. She is also Caterpillar’s lead lobbyist on healthcare and skilled workforce issues.

Before joining Caterpillar, Ann-Marie served as the Global Public Policy Manager for the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM), the U.S.-based international trade group representing the business interests of companies which manufacture and market equipment and services used worldwide for the construction, agriculture, road building, mining, energy, forestry and utilities industries. In her role at AEM, Ann-Marie worked with over 700 member companies to develop policy positions on international trade issues and advocate to Members of Congress, Congressional staff and various Executive Branch officials. She identified trade issues affecting U.S. equipment manufacturers and conducted policy analyses of issues to determine possible effects on AEM member companies. To further AEM’s success, Ann-Marie worked closely with other trade associations and coalitions to frame positions and construct advocacy campaigns.

Ann-Marie also worked as an International Trade Specialist at the U.S. Department of Commerce China Office where she ensured U.S. companies’ access to the Chinese market and the opportunity to compete on a level playing field. Her portfolio included standards and technical barriers to trade, consumer goods, textiles and U.S. trade with Hong Kong and Macau. Ann-Marie received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Chinese from Middlebury College and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Hawaii.

She is also a graduate of The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) Hopkins-Nanjing Center. Ann-Marie represents Caterpillar on the board of the United States – Indonesia Society as well as other bilateral business councils. Ann-Marie is an American Mandarin Society Fellow and speaks Mandarin Chinese as well as Jamaican Patois.