It usually started before dawn. Whether is was his paper route for the Grand Rapids Press or shagging balls at the local golf course in trade for free rounds, JR has always started early. At Western Michigan University, he joined the groundbreaking Integrated Supply Management program as a freshman and as a sophomore, was one of the youngest supply chain interns in the history of the Deere & Co. Once he became an upperclassman, JR started a student mentoring program for underclassmen that is still going strong today. It’s ha
rd to say exactly where it came from, but that drive to get up and get to work has defined JR professionally and personally.
As a coveted campus recruit, JR chose to join Ford Motor Company as a Lean Manufacturing Specialist. During his time with Ford, the auto industry experienced unprecedented upheaval. It was an amazing way to learn how to lead in difficult times. One of JR’s proudest achievements was building an outreach program for minority-owned suppliers that brought all the resources and business intelligence of one of the world’s largest companies to startups and small businesses. This experience and success working with young, innovative companies inspired JR to leave Ford and join Stout Risius Ross, a boutique consulting firm specializing in bringing technology solutions to manufacturing.
JR immediately began building a program to develop technology that would give any company the visibility to manage risk throughout the supply chain. His group’s aim was to transform expert understanding of process improvement principles into usable products. They were so successful, that the program was spun off and eventually acquired by Grant Thornton. At GT, JR refined and expanded the program eventually building and delivering three robust systems to manage every aspect of the supply chain. It became abundantly clear as the bottom fell out of the auto industry around 2007, how vital these types of systems would be in the future. The supply chain was failing in every direction but using the principles and technology JR had helped to build, companies would be able to see further into the future and protect themselves.