Age: 35.
Education: Bachelor's in industrial engineering, University of Toledo; MBA, Indiana Wesleyan University.
Greatest achievement? My children — my wife and I have three young boys, and nothing is more satisfying and rewarding than being a parent! Professionally, I would say my greatest challenge to date, and subsequent achievement, was successfully transitioning from an engineer focused on projects to an engineering leader developing new engineers into productive professionals. It seems simple; it is not.
What is your current challenge at work? We have several very large program launches underway. As with any new programs there are challenges as new technologies are developed and deployed. However, the largest challenge has been recruiting enough of the right technical talent to keep pace with the demand.
What market most interests you? Improving energy storage is clearly one of the greatest challenges of this era and there are some real breakthroughs that appear to be nearing scalability. This will fundamentally change the automotive industry, but will stretch far beyond that and touch nearly everything we use today.
What about the plastics industry surprises you? How narrowly focused on specific materials companies can become. There is so much opportunity out there if we are willing to explore market potential outside of our current comfort zone. If you're not growing, you are dying.
What is the best advice you have ever received? Focus first on what is truly important, learn every day, and never lose sight of who you are.
What advice would you give to a person considering a career in plastics? Find a company that is growing and developing new products. Work for someone who is willing and able to teach you — if they aren't willing to teach you by the time you are 18-24 months in at most, leave and work for someone who is.
If you were CEO of a company what would you do first? One of the greatest enemies to any organization is unhealthy amounts of bureaucracy and excessive inter-office politics. Most companies that have that problem developed those symptoms unintentionally over time as they grew. As CEO, the first major priority would be to eliminate as much of this as possible and refocus the organization on the path to grow.
What job do you really want to have in the future? Running my own company has always been on my bucket list.
What do you do to relax? I love spending time in the outdoors and spend a good amount of time hiking, fishing and trying to sneak in as much hunting as I can. You really cannot appreciate the beauty and sophistication of the natural world without spending time in it. It puts perspective on many things and refreshes the mind and soul.
