BS, MS - IA State U.; Ph.D - U of KY; 16 years Upjohn (Pfizer) & Monsanto R&D mgnt; 11 yr Technology Commercialization, TX A&M, IN Univ, U of IL; founder/owner of Med-Launch Inc. (pharmaceutical, medical devices and medical sftw consulting); 7 yr as independent crop adjuster; visiting prof in IL school of business teaching technology commercialization (TC); author and publisher of TC book;

EXECUTIVE PROFILE - Lead mid-size multiple site, international manufacturing & construction companies.

NOTEWORTHY PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE TURNAROUND & PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT - Focused on restructuring, sales growth, cost reduction, creation of partnerships and technical & product innovation.

SALES & MARKETING Directed sales in consumer, industrial, international, government and military markets utilizing a broad array of sales and distribution channels. Directed product development for sophisticated highly engineered products and decorative consumer protects. Market development: Introduced proprietary products to communities in all major regional world markets and recruited and licensed technologies to partners in each region.

INTERNATIONAL EXPANSION Opened Asian market by recruiting network of agents. Increased European market share from 15% to 35%.by geographic expansion and establishing company owned assembly and distribution operations. Opened Japanese market, provided technology and gained government approval for a new architectural product. Recruited partner and established manufacturing JV which became Japanese market leader. Expanded construction sales and captured projects in 11 European and Asian countries by establishing a network of foreign partners and forming a JV in Singapore and a subsidiary in Australia.

OPERATIONS Enhanced professional management by implementing strategic and operational planning, continuous improvement and lean thinking. Installed integrated operating systems, implemented objective setting and performance evaluation procedures and quality systems. Managed by a team and consensus approach. Negotiated 3 acquisitions, 4 divestitures and formation of 3 JVs. Expanded 3 plants, moved 2 plants, and closed 2 plants. Designed and directed construction of two plants with proprietary processes and equipment.

POSITIONS

• President and CEO of three plastic processing companies: Two were owned by equity capital firms and one was privately owned and was acquired by a public company. All had multiple plants and one had two large Maquiladora plants in Mexico. Products included: large size plastic cases for the TV industry and selected consumer electronics manufacturers; custom designed precision plastic parts for the automotive, bearing and industrial markets; and large plastic tanks and bulk containers for the chemical, agriculture, industrial markets.
• President & CEO of an international specialty construction company that designed, engineered, fabricated and installed custom designed tensile fabric structures, skylights and long span roof systems for domed stadiums and other large buildings. Negotiated the transition from USA to Japanese ownership and established two JVs in Asia.
• Senior VP of Corporate Operations (comparable to COO) and VP of Business Development for an international company that developed, manufactured and marketed custom, high value fluropolymer based engineered products and materials systems for use in severe service environments. 40% of sales were from custom designed systems. The company transitioned from private to public (NYSE) ownership. The company had one JV in Australia, one JV in Japan, 5 domestic plants and two plants in Europe.
• Executive VP & COO of a closely held furniture company with 5 plants.
• General Manager of a division with 3 plants for a public NYSE furniture company.
• COO & Co-Founder of a furniture company with 2 plants. Toward end of graduate school with a student friend acquired companys assets from a NYSE corporation and became a contract manufacturer.
• Captain, US Army. Commanded infantry, armored and engineer units. Decorated Vietnam Veteran.

Expert in Starting up Businesses. Very knowledgeable in Finance and Accounting. Dr. Harris is an experienced business entrepreneur with a passion for helping others. Dr. Harris has written and published articles about business entrepreneurship and finance in academic journals. Dr. Harris employs a Socratic teaching style guiding students to succeed by focusing on learner-centered, goal-based learning techniques.

Over 40 years in corporate America in industries ranging from Sandpaper to contact lenses and in organizations as large as Fortune 50 companies to start-ups. My career has primarily been in Financial and Operating management but has also included general management and consulting. I have worked in multi-national, multi-divisional environments dealing with factories and marketing in the US, Asia, Africa, Europe, South America and Australia. Products have ranged from consumer electronics to defense to contact lenses and finally a not for profit.