Fifth Third Bancorp ·FITB

COO role retained post-Comerica integration with tight CEO span

Financials · Fortune #320 · Functional structure · 19K employees · Cincinnati, Ohio

View as of:
6
CEO span
↓ tighter than peers (avg 10)
1
Avg span
tight
3
Max depth
3 levels
5.5 yr
Avg tenure
stable vs FY2024
100%
Internal hires
↑ above industry avg
Consolidated financials FY2025 · period end 2025-12-31 · 10-K
Net income
$2.5B
Total assets
$214.4B
Shares out
902M

Sourced from Fifth Third Bancorp DEF 14A · filed 2026-03-09 ↗ View on SEC

Interactive org chart

Fifth Third Bancorp organizational chart

Explore the executive structure, reporting layers, and scenario-ready operating model from public filings.

Open editable chart

COO role retained post-Comerica integration with tight CEO span. This page maps Fifth Third Bancorp’s executive structure, detailing CEO direct reports, governance context, recent leadership changes, compensation, and peer comparisons for a large U.S. regional bank.

What to model

Use the chart to test org decisions, not just view reporting lines

Start with the public baseline, then use the scenario views and source-backed changes to ask what happens when leadership, span, or team ownership shifts.

Latest signal Kevin P. Lavender changed role as Vice Chair, Commercial Bank

Transitioned from Head of Commercial Bank to Vice Chair on July 14, 2025.

Source · See change log

Scenario views in the chart

  • Add Chief AI Officer Introduce a Chief AI Officer reporting to the CEO to centralize AI governance and innovation.
  • COO Departs: Flatten Operations Eliminate the COO role and redistribute operations oversight to business and technology leaders.

Atlas work this supports

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The people

Who's running this

7 executives identified as Named Executive Officers in the most recent SEC proxy. Bar length scales with tenure.

internal

Timothy N. Spence

President and Chief Executive Officer

Executive

4 yr

7 reports

internal

Bryan D. Preston

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Finance

5 yr

0 reports

internal

James C. Leonard

Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

Operations

6 yr

0 reports

internal

Robert P. Shaffer

Executive Vice President and Chief Risk Officer

Risk

7 yr

0 reports

internal

Jude A. Schramm

Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer

Technology

6 yr

0 reports

internal

Kevin P. Lavender

Vice Chair, Commercial Bank

Commercial Banking

5 yr

0 reports

Christian Gonzalez

Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer

Legal

3 yr

1 reports

The pay

Executive compensation

From the most recent DEF 14A Summary Compensation Table. 2 named executive officers disclosed. Bar length scales with total compensation.

Timothy N. Spence $11.1M
Base salary
$1.12M
Bonus
$7.14M
Stock awards
$2.33M
Option awards
$467K
Fiscal year
FY2025
Source
SEC DEF 14A ↗
Bryan D. Preston $3.7M
Base salary
$675K
Bonus
$2.04M
Stock awards
$902K
Option awards
$131K
Fiscal year
FY2025
Source
SEC DEF 14A ↗

The skin in the game

Beneficial ownership

Insider stock holdings and the company's ownership requirements for executives and directors. Disclosed in the most recent DEF 14A.

Stock ownership requirements
6×Director cash retainer

Directors must hold stock equal to six times annual director salary.

The businesses

How Fifth Third Bancorp divides the work

3 divisions report into the group CEO. Tile size scales with estimated headcount.

Commercial Banking

6K employees

Vice Chair, Commercial Bank (Kevin P. Lavender)

Provides lending, treasury, and advisory services to middle-market and corporate clients.

Technology & Information

3K employees

Chief Information Officer (Jude A. Schramm)

Manages enterprise technology platforms, cybersecurity, and digital banking systems.

Risk Management

2K employees

Chief Risk Officer (Robert P. Shaffer)

Oversees enterprise risk, compliance, and regulatory governance.

The thesis

Why this org is unusual

The most distinctive feature of Fifth Third Bancorp’s structure is the continued presence of a powerful COO role even after a major bank merger.

The CEO maintains a relatively tight span of control, with six direct reports covering finance, operations, risk, technology, commercial banking, and legal. This reflects a conservative, regulator-friendly operating model typical of large regional banks. The Commercial Bank remains represented at the CEO level through a Vice Chair role rather than a standalone divisional CEO, reinforcing a functional rather than divisional structure.
  • COO retained post-merger
  • Commercial Bank led by Vice Chair

The comparison

How Fifth Third Bancorp stacks up

Compared with peers such as PNC, U.S. Bancorp, and Truist, Fifth Third’s executive structure is more traditional, retaining a COO and CRO as core CEO reports. Some peers have flattened operations by eliminating the COO or elevating business-line CEOs. Fifth Third’s approach emphasizes operational control and risk …

C-suite size

Fifth Third Bancorp
7
PNC Financial Services
10
U.S. Bancorp
11
Truist Financial
12
Regions Financial
9

Reporting depth

Fifth Third Bancorp
3 levels
PNC Financial Services
5 levels
U.S. Bancorp
5 levels
Truist Financial
6 levels
Regions Financial
5 levels

Avg C-suite tenure

Fifth Third Bancorp
6 yr
PNC Financial Services
6 yr
U.S. Bancorp
7 yr
Truist Financial
5 yr
Regions Financial
6 yr

Has COO / Has CAIO

Fifth Third Bancorp ✓ COO — no CAIO
PNC Financial Services — no COO — no CAIO
U.S. Bancorp — no COO — no CAIO
Truist Financial ✓ COO — no CAIO
Regions Financial ✓ COO — no CAIO

Current signals

What changed recently

The most notable recent change was Kevin P. Lavender’s transition to Vice Chair of the Commercial Bank in mid‑2025.

  • reorg
    Kevin P. Lavender Vice Chair, Commercial Bank

    Transitioned from Head of Commercial Bank to Vice Chair on July 14, 2025.

    Source
  • Date not confirmed new
    Priscilla Almodovar Director

    Joined the Board in January 2026.

    Source

Leadership Timeline

Year-over-year executive structure based on SEC proxy and annual filings.

FY2025
DEF 14A filed 2026-03-09
CEO
Timothy N. Spence
CEO span
6
C-suite
6
Avg tenure
5.5 yr

Leadership stable following Comerica merger announcement.

Named executive officers (6)
  • Timothy N. Spence - CEO since 2022
  • Bryan D. Preston - CFO since 2021
  • James C. Leonard - COO since 2020
  • Robert P. Shaffer - CRO since 2019
  • Kevin P. Lavender - Commercial Bank since 2021
  • Jude A. Schramm - CIO since 2020
FY2024
DEF 14A filed 2025-03-10
CEO
Timothy N. Spence
CEO span
6
C-suite
6
Avg tenure
4.8 yr

Pre-merger structure with similar executive span.

Named executive officers (1)
  • Timothy N. Spence - CEO since 2022
FY2023
DEF 14A filed 2024-03-11
CEO
Timothy N. Spence
CEO span
6
C-suite
6
Avg tenure
4 yr

Early tenure of current CEO.

Named executive officers (1)
  • Timothy N. Spence - CEO since 2022

Year-over-year changes

FY2024 → FY2025

Leadership titles evolved modestly while overall structure remained stable.

  • CEO span: 6 → 6
  • C-suite size: 6 → 6
  • Avg tenure: 4.8 → 5.5 yr
  • retitled Kevin P. Lavender - Vice Chair, Commercial Bank (was Head of Commercial Bank) (DEF 14A, 2026-03-09)

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is the CEO of Fifth Third Bancorp?

Timothy N. Spence has served as President and CEO since 2022.

What type of organizational structure does Fifth Third Bancorp use?

Fifth Third uses a primarily functional structure with major control functions reporting directly to the CEO.

How many direct reports does Fifth Third Bancorp's CEO have?

The CEO has six direct executive reports.

How has Fifth Third Bancorp's leadership changed recently?

Recent changes include a Commercial Bank leadership retitling in 2025 and new board appointments in 2026.

Does Fifth Third Bancorp have a COO?

Yes. James C. Leonard serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

Sources

  • DEF 14A, Mar 2026
  • SEC EDGAR: Fifth Third Bancorp DEF 14A Proxy Statement
  • SEC EDGAR: Fifth Third Bancorp 10-K Annual Report

Reference

Cite this page

If you reference this page in research, analysis, or news writing, use one of the formats below. Citation includes the SEC filing source where applicable.

APA 7th
Creately. (2026). Fifth Third Bancorp organizational structure. Creately. Retrieved , from https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/fifth-third-bancorp/
MLA 9th
"Fifth Third Bancorp Organizational Structure." Creately, April 1, 2026, https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/fifth-third-bancorp/. Accessed .
Chicago 17
Creately. "Fifth Third Bancorp Organizational Structure." Last modified April 1, 2026. https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/fifth-third-bancorp/.
Original SEC source View on SEC ↗
Fifth Third Bancorp. DEF 14A. Filed 2026-03-09. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/35527/000119312526098679/d47600ddef14a.htm

Permanent URL: https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/fifth-third-bancorp/ · last updated 2026-04-01

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