Aqua America’s Chris Franklin Named 2017 Most Admired CEO by Philadelphia Business Journal

Aqua America Inc. (NYSE: WTR), announced today that President and CEO Christopher H. Franklin has been named one of the Philadelphia Business Journal’s Most Admired CEOs in 2017.

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Aqua America President and CEO Chris Franklin (Photo: Business Wire)

“Chris is modernizing what has been generally known as a very traditional industry,” said Aqua Board Chairman Nick DeBenedictis, who nominated Franklin for the award. “He is an action-oriented CEO who has cultivated a great amount of employee goodwill throughout his 25-year career at Aqua. He’s developed strong relationships with existing and new leadership in the company and helped make tremendous progress on the goals the board adopted in late 2015 when he became CEO.”

As CEO, Franklin has set his sights on being a leader in solving the nation’s water and wastewater infrastructure problem across Aqua’s eight-state footprint. In Chris’ two and a half years at the helm, Aqua has welcomed 20,000 new customers and invested about $1 billion in critical infrastructure improvements.

Franklin is also taking a closer look at internal practices and communication initiatives. The company embarked on a core values exploration and is using the findings to enhance company culture. It also unveiled a new employee safety campaign, and began using innovative internal communications tactics to open the lines of communication and access between all levels of leadership and employees. His work on diversity and inclusion was recognized by the Forum of Executive Women and 2020 Women on Boards.

“It’s an honor to be recognized among this incredible group of CEOs,” Franklin said. “I must give credit to the entire team of professional men and women who help me protect and provide Earth’s most essential resource in the communities we’re fortunate to serve.”

The Most Admired CEO award recognizes Philadelphia’s most dynamic business leaders with a strong record of innovation in their field, outstanding financial performance, a commitment to quality, a strong vision, a commitment to diversity in the workplace and contributions to the Greater Philadelphia region. The honorees for 2017 were selected by the Philadelphia Business Journal editorial board.

Aqua America is one of the largest U.S.-based, publicly traded water utilities and serves nearly 3 million people in Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina, Illinois, Texas, New Jersey, Indiana and Virginia. Aqua America is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol WTR. Visit AquaAmerica.com for more information, or follow Aqua on Facebook at facebook.com/MyAquaAmerica and on Twitter at @MyAquaAmerica.

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