Mr. Bender served as interim President and Chief Executive Officer of WPX and as a member of the board of directors of WPX Energy, Inc. (WPX: NYSE) from December 2013 to May 2014. He also was Chairman of the Board of Directors of APCO Oil and Gas International Inc. (a publicly-traded affiliate of WPX) from December 2013 to August 2014. He retired from WPX in July 2014.
From April 2011 to December 2013, Mr. Bender served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel of WPX. Prior to that, Mr. Bender served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel of The Williams Companies, Inc. (Williams) from December 2002 to December 2011. From June 1997 to June 2002, he was Senior Vice President and General Counsel of NRG Energy, Inc. Mr. Bender currently serves on the board of directors of Two Harbors Investment Corp. (TWO: NYSE) and of the general partner of Shell Midstream Partners (SHLX: NYSE). He is a member of the Oklahoma, Colorado, and American Bar Associations.
Mr. Bender has a juris doctorate degree from the University of Minnesota Law School and a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN. He is a native of Aurora, IL.