{"id":"12a125c3-b7a8-4ffb-8f8b-926921ec111c","slug":"frederick-w-smith","name":"Frederick W. Smith","bioBrief":"Founder of FedEx Corporation who revolutionized express delivery, launching Federal Express in 1971 based on a concept from his Yale term paper. A Marine Corps veteran who served two tours in Vietnam (Silver Star, Bronze Star, two Purple Hearts), he led FedEx as CEO until 2022 and as Executive Chairman until his death on June 21, 2025, in Memphis, Tennessee.","priorExits":null,"nationality":"American","verificationPosture":"reported","aliases":[],"sources":[{"url":"https://www.fedex.com/en-us/about/leadership/frederick-w-smith.html","title":"Frederick W. Smith — FedEx Leadership","sourceName":"FedEx (official)"},{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_W._Smith","title":"Frederick W. Smith","sourceName":"Wikipedia"},{"url":"https://newsroom.fedex.com/newsroom/global-english/frederick-w-smith-visionary-founder-of-fedex-dies-at-80","title":"Frederick W. Smith, visionary founder of FedEx, dies at 80","sourceName":"FedEx Newsroom"},{"url":"https://www.forbes.com/profile/frederick-smith/","title":"Frederick Smith","sourceName":"Forbes"}],"reviewStatus":"reviewed","createdAt":"2026-08-16T17:02:37.382Z","updatedAt":"2026-08-17T01:51:17.736Z","educations":[],"companyRoles":[{"id":"1975c20a-18b3-422e-8ae8-77fc4f8cc373","personId":"12a125c3-b7a8-4ffb-8f8b-926921ec111c","companyId":"6fc5f8d4-340f-404b-9bd9-b65fd972a3da","role":"founder","roleTitle":"Founder & Former CEO","startDate":null,"endDate":null,"currentRole":false,"roleBasis":"verified_secondary","createdAt":"2026-08-16T17:02:38.144Z","company":{"slug":"fedex","name":"FedEx Corporation"}}],"boardRoles":[],"investorRoles":[],"foundings":[]}