A golden thread knits together Cate Gagliardo’s career in renewable energy
Catherine (Cate) Gagliardo knew she wanted to follow in her father's footsteps.
Growing up in Chicago, she watched him expand his vegetable oil company into the emerging biofuels industry, turning used vegetable oil into biodiesel that powered the city's buses. Although her father passed away when she was just 11, his work sparked a fascination with renewable fuels that eventually led her to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where she launched her career in the same industry.
At Illinois, Cate found the opportunity to build what she calls a “bespoke” degree through technical systems management (TSM), now known as engineering technology and management for agricultural systems (ETMAS). The program is offered through the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, part of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences with close ties to The Grainger College of Engineering.
The program’s flexibility allowed her to combine engineering and applied sciences with business and economics to prepare for a career at the intersection of renewable fuels and commodity trading.
“I’ve always enjoyed taking different pieces and figuring out how they fit together,” Cate said. “Through my degree, I gained the technical knowledge to understand how things work, while also taking accounting and economics courses that helped me understand markets and the bigger picture. I didn’t have to specialize exclusively in engineering or finance. TSM gave me the best of both worlds and prepared me for a career in the renewable fuels industry.”
Along the way, she found mentors who shared her passion and helped her make the most of her college experience.
Professor Joe Harper helped her navigate her academic interests. A study abroad course led by Professor Angela Green-Miller took her to Brazil, where she toured conventional ethanol and cellulosic ethanol facilities — an experience she counts among the highlights of her undergraduate years.
Cate also became the first female president of the Agricultural Mechanization Club, where she developed leadership skills, built friendships, and gained hands-on experience — like learning how to prep lawnmowers for winter as part of the club's annual fundraiser.
During her senior year, she was the only student from ACES selected to participate in a BP case competition through Gies College of Business, where students analyze a real-world business challenge and present their proposed solutions. The experience gave her another opportunity to put her interdisciplinary education into practice.
Yet for Cate, the best part of her Illinois experience was the sense of community she found.
“One of the things I loved most about ABE was how it made such a big university feel small,” Cate said. “Coming from Chicago, I wasn’t intimidated by the size of Illinois, but ABE gave me a close-knit community and a sense of belonging. I was able to make Illinois my own, and I think that’s what makes ABE and the College of ACES so special. You really feel like you’re part of something.”
Launching a career
After graduation, Cate moved to Omaha, Nebraska, to join Gavilon, a commodity trading company whose portfolio included feed ingredients, ethanol, biodiesel, natural gas, and refined petroleum products.
When Gavilon's energy business was sold to NGL Energy Partners, Cate moved to Houston, where she managed wholesale gasoline and diesel supply throughout Texas, overseeing approximately 25 million gallons of fuel each month.
She later joined World Fuel Services, where she built a fuel supply business serving oilfield operations across Texas.
“It was like building your own business from the ground up,” she said.
From identifying market opportunities to coordinating transportation and logistics, Cate managed nearly every aspect of the operation — sometimes working directly with truck drivers to keep fuel moving.
It was this experience where her interdisciplinary degree made a difference in her work.
“My business classes helped me identify market opportunities, while my technical background gave me an understanding of what drives energy markets,” she said. “I was able to bring those pieces together and turn that knowledge into something tangible.”
Providing marketplace insights
Today, Cate is commercial director of strategic accounts at S&P Global, where she has spent eight years helping major agricultural and energy companies navigate complex commodity markets. She manages a portfolio of approximately $25 million in annual market research subscriptions, connecting clients with insights that inform strategic business decisions.
That might mean helping an agricultural company understand how rising natural gas demand could affect its operating costs or how geopolitical disruptions could reshape international trade routes and commodity supplies.
The need for that information has only grown as global markets have weathered the COVID-19 pandemic, international conflicts, and shifting energy policies.
“In times of volatility, people really seek and need information,” Cate said. “I love being at the forefront of providing that information, especially when things are changing so quickly.”
Following the thread
In recognition of her professional accomplishments, ABE awarded Cate the 2026 Young Alumni Achievement Award. The honor gave her a chance to reflect on how her Illinois education shaped her career and continues to influence her work today.
“One thing I reflected on during the awards ceremony is just how much the College of ACES has stayed with me well beyond graduation,” she said. “My degree in Technical Systems Management laid the foundation for a career that has taken me into the global energy and commodities industry, but the impact of my time at Illinois goes far beyond where my career started. The experiences, relationships, and lessons from ABE continue to be a part of the work I do.”
And while her career has taken her to different corners of the energy industry, the interests that first brought her to Illinois — and the influence of her father — have remained a constant, golden thread in her life.
“What originally drove my interest in Illinois was renewable fuels and biodiesel and what my father did,” she said. “It's funny how the market landscape has come full circle back into the renewable space, and now a lot of my focus is there today.”
The ABE Distinguished Alumni Award was established in 2008 and the Young Alumni Achievement Award was introduced in 2020 to recognize alumni who have achieved significant success and distinction in their careers. Awardees are selected for their contributions to their professions and the lasting impact they have made in their fields. Learn more at abe.illinois.edu/alumni-giving/alumni.