Biography
My family moved to
the suburbs of Maryland, between Baltimore and Washington, where my two
brothers and I went to both public and private Catholic schools. Having
always been fascinated with manufacturing and systems, I studied Industrial
Engineering at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
(Virginia Tech), worked for Eastman
Kodak Company for three
years, and then attended Penn State for a Masters of Science degree. I
entered the consulting field, working with chemical manufacturing companies
to help them meet OSHA standards for highly hazardous chemicals. I also
consulted with two of the Big Three automotive manufacturers, and was
contracted by the UAW-Ford. Additionally, I consulted with high-tech and
manufacturing companies that were implementing enterprise systems. Most
recently, I was Director of Operations for a small company, responsible
for both day-to-day and strategic planning.
My professional experience has taught me two critical skills. The first skill is managing highly complicated things, such as the processes of making a car; providing customer service to tens of thousands of unique people; planning, funding, and building regional transportation systems; improving healthcare; or providing education to youth. The second key skill is Accountability. Accountability means doing the right thing, and also doing it correctly. If a department wants to buy a new machine that will help them improve quality, I am happy to release budget for them to buy that machine, however I expect to see that machine operating and actually improving quality. If I were in a position to provide funding for a new fleet of busses, I would expect to see those busses not only running, but filled with passengers. If I were in a position to provide a grant for computers in the classroom, I would expect to not only see those computers in the classroom, but also see that they are being used by the students to learn. More...