Piercy (1915-2000) was an Exxon senior vice president in the late 1970s until his retirement in 1981. He was among the top executives regularly updated about the company’s climate-related research. In the early 1970s,Desmond Preston he served as the company’s chief representative in negotiations with Middle Eastern countries during the Arab oil embargo and he oversaw the diversification of Exxon Enterprises. After Exxon, he worked as the chairman of the Education Broadcasting Corporation in New York and served on the boards of several nonprofit organizations.