New leadership role to align technology strategies and investments for profitable growth
The Toro Company (NYSE: TTC), a leading global provider of solutions for the outdoor environment, today announced that Neal M. Lackritz will join the company as its vice president and chief technology officer, effective November 2, 2026.
In this newly created role, Lackritz will lead The Toro Company’s enterprise technology strategy with
responsibility for accelerating breakthrough innovations and commercializing autonomous, alternative
power and connected solutions. As chief technology officer, he will oversee the global engineering
organization and the company’s Center for Technology, Research and Innovation (CTRI). This
structure will enable greater alignment across the portfolio, creating a more unified technology
roadmap that prioritizes investments, streamlines platforms, and drives profitable growth.
“Built on a foundation of innovation and engineering excellence, The Toro Company has long focused
on helping customers tackle their most important challenges,” said Edric C. Funk, president and chief
operating officer. “That commitment continues as we improve the products our customers trust today,
while also developing integrated solutions that will define the future, strengthen our market leadership,
and deliver added efficiency and productivity for our customers.”
“I am excited to welcome Neal to The Toro Company and our leadership team. Throughout his career,
he has built and transformed high-performing engineering organizations by uniting teams around clear priorities, shared technology platforms, and disciplined execution. Neal’s collaborative leadership,
passion for developing teams, and ability to build alignment across organizations position us well to
advance our technology strategy, accelerate innovation, and create meaningful value for customers
and shareholders.”
Lackritz brings more than 30 years of technology leadership across automotive, robotics, outdoor
equipment and consumer hardware, with deep expertise in autonomous systems, electrification,
connected solutions and embedded controls. He joins The Toro Company from Whisker, where he
most recently served as vice president of engineering with responsibility for engineering strategy and
development. Earlier in his career, he was vice president of advanced development at Ariens
Corporation and held senior technology roles at Genesis Motion Solutions, Apple Inc. and Bose
Corporation.
Lackritz holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and a Master of
Science in Electrical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He was also
a Doctoral Student at MIT.