Consultant, Operations Excellence
Rick has a very broad background in operations, engineering, executive leadership, supply chain, government, and academia. Over the 30 years of his career, he has been fortunate to have worked with Fortune 50 companies, small public and private organizations, and consulting firms on four continents. The markets covered include medical products & services, oil & gas, automotive, capital equipment, pulp & paper, chemical manufacturing, building products, mining, electronics, and food & beverage. Rick has led teams of employees to become six sigma and lean certified and has mentored hundreds of projects and programs.
Skill Set
- Toyota Production System implementation
- Six Sigma DMAIC and DMADV at Green Belt, Black Belt and Master Black Belt levels
- Shingijutsu events and Action Workouts
- Daily Management Systems development and integration (based on SQDC)
- Creation of company Operating Systems (lean and problem-solving playbooks and toolboxes)
- Facility Relocations, set-ups, and optimization utilizing 3P events
- Supply Chain Optimization – outsourcing and insourcing
- Learning and Development of workforces with skills development
Experience
- Executive leadership at President, COO, and VP levels
- Responsible for Lean programs of 1000’s of company employees through certification
- Led Lean Six Sigma teams as direct reports and consultants on a global basis
- Design and process engineering experience with patents issued
- Development of Quality Management Systems (QMS) and Safety Programs
- Projects for 3M, GE, Kraft, PepsiCo, Eaton, Kimberly-Clark, Domtar, Coveris, NuMotion, Nestle, Brady Corp, Grainger, Blood Center of WI, and many other companies
- Facilitated business strategy activities that included Voice of Customer, product development, manufacturing release processes, and scale-up that resulted in current marketed products
- Comfortable on shop floors, in board rooms, and around global locations
- Due diligence, acquisition, and integration (buy/sell) for 10 companies
- Current Instructor of Practice – Marquette University MBA Program – Supply Chain
Certifications
- Six Sigma Blackbelt and Master Black Belt, Lean Facilitator
- Shingijutsu Lean and Action Workout Leader
- Shingijutsu North America Lean Facilitator
- GE Crotonville Leadership Track
- ASQ Certified Quality Manager / OE
- ASQ Certified HACCP Auditor
- John Maxwell Leadership / Mentor
Education
- MBA, Operations/Finance ٠ Marquette University
- M.S., Materials Science & Engineering ٠ University of Illinois
- B.S., Materials Science & Engineering (Chem Eng / Polymer Science) ٠ University of Illinois
Rick is involved with many charitable organizations and sits on the Board of Directors of Inspiration Ministries. He is a life-long learner that enjoys innovation and new technologies as applied to manufacturing and engineering processes. In his spare time, Rick will be playing guitar, making BBQ, and spending time with his family in the great Wisconsin outdoors.