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National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL)
BorgWarner Turbo Systems
Grace International School
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
General Motors Design Center
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I was hired out of undergrad into the Ford College Graduate Program. It was a great rotational program that allowed me to create my own assignments which included engineering and business roles. My first roles were design engineer roles, which I used to become a new product development expert. I worked on my MBA part-time and kept asking for assignments that blended engineering and business. When I completed my MBA, I transitioned to marketing and strategy full time. Using that skill set, I began to do Product Marketing at Honeywell, which became a launching pad to run businesses managing people and profit & loss. Today, I work in new innovation areas to stay ahead of the disruptive technologies and businesses all around us now.
I was an active leader of the Society of Women Engineers.
I enjoyed doing diverse activities: intramural soccer, being in a film group, and meeting friends for life.
Find leadership roles while you are at the University – anyone can be a member.
Have more fun and take some classes outside of the norm – I loved the Entrepreneurship and Creative Writing classes I took because they balanced the engineering curriculum.
I started out as a project engineer in 2006 at Stryker Orthopedics in Mahwah, NJ, designing hip replacements for ~7 years. I then moved to San Diego and have been a Quality Engineer for ~6 years at Nuvasive (a spine fusion company).
Day to day, I work with Research & Development to mitigate risks in their designs by doing tolerance analyses, conduct physical implant testing using Instron/MTS machines, resolve non-conformances when manufacturers make products out-of-spec, and help mitigate risks in the entire workstream of production (barstock through machining to cleaning and packaging).
I interned at Caterpillar and Boeing while at the University of Michigan. After graduating, I started working full-time at Boeing and have been working there since! I have always worked in the same function (structural engineering) starting as an engineer then as a lead engineer which I was overseeing others’ technical work. I entered engineering management since I really liked working and leading people and looking at the larger picture. I have always worked on the commercial airplanes at Boeing with a majority of my time on new airplane development programs, but I have also had a chance to work with supporting airline customers.
The design projects at the University of Michigan really helped me apply what I learned in my classes and see what type of engineering that I was interested in.
Any class that had group work was really important to developing my people skills as employers look for in entry-level employees. The classes that allow you to improve your written or verbal communication classes are a great opportunity to improve that skill set.
I would really take advantage of the organizations that the engineering college has to offer. You’re really lucky to be going to such a diverse engineering college. This will really help you develop your interests in engineering and show your passions to future employers.
I was involved in the Engineering Global Leadership Honors Program within the College of Engineering at the University of Michigan, and have co-oped (or worked during the school semesters) twice throughout my time at General Electric Appliances and Tesla Motors. I interned at Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), the utility in California, through my Tauber Institute capstone with two MBA students the summer of 2017 and ever since have been passionate about energy sustainability. I’ve since interned at Tesla and Black & Veatch in supply chain program management and management consulting roles, but wanted to do something more technical, so I ended up getting a masters in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan, focusing on environmental sustainability. I will have a data scientist role at NREL.
I didn’t think I’d like building things when I first started the engineering program at U of M, but over the years have gotten much more comfortable in the machine shop.
Favorite Classes: I really enjoyed the robotics classes I took as an undergraduate student where I got to design the device in a computer aided design software and build using the mill and lathe.
Favorite Student Orgs: Engineering Global Leadership (EGL) Honors Program, Society of Women Engineers, Michigan Cycling Club
While at UM, I studied ME and IOE. I went into consulting at Bain & Co after school because I wanted to get a breadth of experiences, try different things, and get exposure to a breadth of industries. While I learned a ton in consulting that I rely on now, I realized I missed the ability to make tangible change like I would in a more ops-focused role. I joined Home Chef as the Ops Excellence Director when the company was doing about 3K boxes per week (we’re now doing close to 120K). The ops excellence team (which was just me at the start!) focused KPIs and reporting, process improvement, and plant-floor tech. Working at a startup was an awesome opportunity to make an impact, and really affect the day-to-day success of a company. I learned a ton of real world experience and how to affect change. I’ve also been able to grow my career and leadership – I now lead a team of 10 product managers on our tech team.
I was in Engineering Global Leadership (EGL) at UM (now a part of the honors college). I can’t recommend getting involved in student orgs enough – EGL and my network provided me with a ton of opportunities.
I was a full time M-Racing team member as a student, which played a significant part in finding my first job as a design engineer for Penske Racing, where I worked in engine system design and integration and suspension systems. Since 2010 I have been a Development Engineer at BorgWarner Turbo Systems, where I have enjoyed the opportunity to work within many aspects turbocharger product development including design, simulation, validation testing, and manufacturing.
My favorite classes were a blend of numerical methods, theory, and applications. I learned best when I could immediately apply lessons from class.
After college, I spent two years as a Peace-Corps-type volunteer teaching science in secondary school, then returned to the US, where I was a Quality Assurance/Testing Engineer for the Department of Defense before launching into a career in education. I taught secondary school science and became a Department Head for the school district, where I continued to push for further training for educators as a School Improvement Consultant and a Professional Development Trainer, and finally landed into my current role as the Head of the Science Department at the Grace International School in Thailand. These experiences provided opportunities to encourage and improve public knowledge (including that of students) of science and engineering. These experiences provided outlets for using my scientific and technical education to support the wise cultural applications of science and technology.
Likes: Student Engineering Organization Events (social and academic); Michigan athletic events; Free concerts – School of Music
Take advantage of the cultural variety on campus and around Ann Arbor. Find, develop, and contribute to a social support group. My most important was a student religious organization.
In 1969, Donald began working as a Product Design Engineer at Ford Motor Company before continuing on to graduate school. Upon graduation, Donald worked for 31 years at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory performing research in water related environmental engineering, working on controversial energy projects with associated management responsibilities and program management leadership for Federal agencies. Donald is now retired and lives in Tennessee.
My experiences at the U-M were exceptional. What I gained in my studies prepared me for my career and never left me unprepared, no matter what problems I was presented with.
I hired into GM as a Process Engineer in the Fabrication Shop at Design Center where we supported the Design Studios and built prototype models, show cars, seating bucks, and other design properties. After a few years on the job, I went back to school part time to get my MBA (which GM covered financially), then transitioned to the Business Manager of the Fabrication Shop and became more involved with the business aspect of the organization. After a while, and for a new experience, I moved to Pontiac Truck and Bus as Assistant Program Manager and then Business Manager for specific truck programs in which I learned about the execution and production of vehicle programs.
After a number of years, I returned to GM Design Center as an Assistant Studio Program Manager and then eventually became responsible for my own programs as Studio Program Manager for Midsize Trucks, Hummer, Specialty Vehicles and Crossovers. I then moved to the Global Vehicle Development Process Team, where I became involved in the vehicle development timing and processes specific to Styling. I am now the subject matter expert for Styling processes at GM Design Center and I provide guidance and train all levels of the organization in the areas of Creative Design, Sculpting, Studio Engineering and Studio Program Management.
There are many opportunities at GM for engineers that don’t want to work on the “technical” side of the business. An Engineering background is very valuable for non-engineering positions (Business Manager, Program Manager, Process Developer etc.) that work in the creative and technical environments.
I started my career in the auto industry, not far from Ann Arbor. I worked as a Field Quality Engineer for TRAM, Inc, a Japanese supplier supporting mainly Toyota. It was a great experience: I had the opportunity to be immersed in a new culture, learning quality tools and business management directly from a very experienced team of expats and locals. I progressed in this role, developing business processes and tools to help improve the company’s ability to process field returns from our customers, ID failure root cause, and drive engineering or manufacturing improvements. We realized significant improvements in the quantify of field failures and gained valuable insight into the environments in which North American consumers used our parts on the vehicle, as well as the vehicle system conditions that our parts experienced. I worked into a management position, eventually leading a team of Quality Engineers and an Internal Audit program manager.
After about a decade in the auto business, I jumped ship looking for new experiences and a new location. I hired into Boeing, in Everett, WA and worked as a Supplier Quality Engineer during the development of the 787-8 aircraft, then moved into larger scope airplane development and ultimately served as our Quality Leader on the Airplane Integration leadership team for the 787-9 and 787-10 development efforts. After the arrival of our first daughter, we relocated back to the great state of Michigan where I’m currently working in our Supply Chain team. I support supplier recovery efforts across Michigan and our Central Region to investigate manufacturing or supply chain issues and drive sustainable corrective actions.
Every experience at the University of Michigan has contributed to my personal and professional development. From the people I’ve met who became professional contacts out in the “real world,” to my maturing ability to work with people to accomplish goals.
I still very much remember my experiences with my Junior and Senior level design classes. My fear entering Engin101- I had never programmed anything more than a Ti-89 calculator to plot a curve- I came out on top! I now fully appreciate the significance of communication and the role Engin100 strives to plays.
Favorite Classes: Statistics, Material Science
My first exposure to the scope of what UofM could offer was with UROP (Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program).
Challenge yourself to be a leader in groups, projects, and assignments. Those skills can always use development and experience and failure are your best teacher.
