On January 5, 2023, the board of directors of Southern Company announced that effective March 31, 2023, Chris Womack has been appointed president of the company and elected as a member of the Board of Directors of the company. Effective as of March 31, 2023, the board of directors of the company also increased the size of the Board of Directors from 13 to 14 in connection with the election of Womack to the Board. Thomas A. Fanning, 65, the current chairman of the Board, CEO and president of Southern Company, will relinquish the role of president upon Womack's assumption of the role in March and assume the role of Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors upon Womack's assumption of the role of CEO.

Womack, 64, has served as president of Georgia Power since 2020 and chairman, president and CEO since 2021. Prior to his current roles, he served as executive vice president and president of external affairs for Southern Company. A native of Greenville, Alabama, Womack joined Southern Company in 1988 and has held several leadership positions within Southern Company and its subsidiaries.

He has served as executive vice president of external affairs at Georgia Power and senior vice president and senior production officer of Southern Company Generation. Womack also served as senior vice president of human resources and chief people officer at Southern Company, as well as senior vice president of public relations and corporate services at Alabama Power. Prior to joining Southern Company, Womack worked on Capitol Hill for the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington, DC.

He served as a legislative aide for former Congressman Leon E. Panetta and as staff director for the Subcommittee on Personnel and Police for the Committee on House Administration. He holds a bachelor's degree from Western Michigan University and a master's degree from The American University. He completed the Stanford Executive Program in 2001.