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Occupation

Industrial Design / Project

Management / Design Research

Objective

Product development position

leveraging both design and

management skills in the

development of innovative,

brand-building new products

Education

University of Wisconsin

Platteville

Project Management

Master of Science

Aquinas College

Business Management

Master of Management Arts

University of Michigan

Industrial Design

Bachelor of Fine Arts, cum Laude

Center for Creative Studies

Illustration

Manufacturing ProcessExperience

Injection Molding

Compression Molding

Die Casting

Blow Molding

Thermoforming

Welding

Roll Forming

Brake Forming

Plastic Extrusion

Aluminum Extrusion

Stamping

Tube Bending

Molded Plywood

Background Summary

I am an enthusiastic Design Manager, Industrial Designer, Design Researcher,

Project Manager, and Product Line Manager with deep experience conceiving and

directing development of innovative solutions for complex product lines. I love being

part of a driven, innovative, world class product development team.

I am a motivator. I love to help a team see the opportunity and watch excitement

build as people realize they have it within their power to do something that’s never

been done before and in so doing become leaders themselves.

I love to dig; equally comfortable interviewing customers, users, and sales staff to

glean the direct, personal experiences that reveal the competitive opportunity

hidden beneath the initial response. I love to find relationships and connections

between seemingly unrelated walks of life; to understand why “this” is like “that” and

how understanding the one can suggest solutions to the other.

Awards and Distinctions

Hold 38 registered patents. Relevant examples are:

- Modular Furniture, U.S. Patent Number 5,220,871

- Chair With Adjustable Arm, U.S. Patent Number 5,439,267

- Chair Arm, U.S. Patent Number D393,161

- Seating Unit, U.S. Patent Number D383,323

Co-recipient of 2014 Red Dot Award for Reversible Airline Seat

Co-recipient of 2000 Best of NEOCON Gold Award for “Train” training table system

Co-recipient of 2000 Industrial Designer Society of America and BusinessWeek

magazine, IDEA Award, Silver Award, for work contributed to "Leap"® task seating

Co-recipient of 1997 IIDA “Acclaim Award” for “TC2”

Co-recipient of 1996 IIDA “Acclaim Award” for “Table Cable”

Co-recipient of 1996 Facilities Design & Management “Best of NeoCon” Gold Award

in category of Tooling Solutions for “Table Cable”

Co-recipient of 1996 Facility Manager Magazine, First Place Award in Task Seating

for "Springboard"

Recipient of Design Distinction Award in 1994 from ID magazine’s 40th

Annual

Design review in category of “Furniture” for the “Healthy Armrest”

Co-recipient of 1989 Institute of Business Designers and Contract magazine “IBD

Award” for product design on "Context" Systems Furniture

Co-recipient of Industrial Designers Society of America 1989 IDEA Award for

Industrial Design Excellence in category of Furniture and Fixtures for work on

"Context" Systems Furniture

Recipient of Industrial Designers Society of America Certificate of Merit for

achievement and promise in study of Industrial Design, April 28, 1984

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Special Expertise

Ergonomics & Anthropometrics

Contract Office Furniture Design

User Requirements Research

Design Thinking

Applications Expertise

Rhino 3D

Flamingo

SolidWorks

Sketchbook Pro

Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Illustrator

Microsoft Office Suite

Professional History

Lead Industrial Designer - Safco Products, Inc. - 2013 - 2015

Safco Products markets office furniture and accessories through wholesale, retail,

and e-tail channels. In this role I teamed with counterparts in product management to

research market trends, align our product plan with the larger strategic vision,

conceive product solutions, and manage the activities of suppliers and consultants.

Industrial Design Manager - Zodiac Seats U.S. - 2012 - 2013

Zodiac Seats U.S. is a division of Zodiac Aerospace that develops and manufactures

Economy and Premium Economy class airline seating for Boeing, Airbus, and

virtually every airline around the world. In this role I contributed strategic vision to the

product plan, conceived product solutions, managed suppliers and consultants, and

guided the development and activities of five Industrial Designers.

Principal - Deimen Design - 2007 - 2012

Deimen Design was an independent design consultancy specializing in the

development of furniture solutions for the office, hospitality, and institutional furniture

markets. In this role I established collaborative relationships with client companies,

developing an intimate understanding of each customer's requirements, capabilities,

and competitive strengths and weaknesses in order to conceive and develop best-of-

class product solutions.

Associate Product Line Manager - Seating - Kimball Office - 2005 - 2007

Kimball Office markets office, lodging, and hospitality furniture solutions. In this role

I directed research into market opportunities, developed product plans and

supporting financial analyses, shaped product strategies, authored product briefs,

collaborated with customers and dealer sales teams, and mentored or directed the

activities of graphic and product designers, engineers, procurement specialists,

overseas suppliers, and customer support specialists on the development of new

products and collateral and promotional materials.

Senior Designer – Kimball International Inc. - 2000 - 2005

In this role I co-directed market opportunity research, formulated product

development strategies, led multidisciplinary product development teams, guided

evolution of product vision, designed and directed product design on various projects,

assessed market response to proposed product solutions, collaborated with

customers and dealer sales teams, and mentored and directed the activities of junior

level designers, engineers, suppliers, and model shop staff.

Manager of Design - VECTA, INC. - 1995 - 2000

A subsidiary of Steelcase, Inc., Vecta markets high-end seating and table systems,

including power and data distribution, to the office, education, and corporate training

markets. In this role I established strategic vision for our product plan, conceived

award winning product solutions, managed suppliers and consultants, guided the

activities, and budgets of various product development teams, partnered with the

marketing group in development of marketing materials, and directed research into

ergonomic and technical regulatory requirements, and market opportunities.

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Senior Designer - STEELCASE, INC.

Steelcase manufactures office furniture products for all but the lowest price points. In

this role I held positions of progressively increasing responsibility and authority from

Design Intern to Senior Industrial Designer. I spearheaded anthropometric and

ergonomic research to reveal specific requirements that turned market opportunities

into award winning product solutions, modeled product solutions from sketch models

to photo-ready finish quality prototypes, contributed to product development plans,

and generated market disrupting, game changing product concepts.