William Agee, former Bendix CEO, has died. Agee passed away Dec. 20, 2017, at the age of 79, due to respiratory failure as a complication of scleroderma, according to media reports.

Agee gained the attention of the corporate world and the news media as one of the youngest chief executives in the U.S. He was appointed CEO of Bendix in 1976, when he was only 38. A Harvard MBA, Agee became known for his agile and unorthodox approach to management. However, he quickly became surrounded in controversy following rumors that he had been having an affair with his executive assistant, Mary Cunningham, also a Harvard MBA, who quickly moved up the ranks to become vice president of strategic planning. While they both denied the affair, the two later divorced their spouses and married.

Agee left Bendix following the company’s merger with Allied Corp. in 1983. He went on to serve as CEO of Morrison Knudsen construction company and later as a business consultant, serving on numerous boards of directors in addition to his own volunteer and philanthropic work.

To read more about Agee’s life and career, click here.