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Leadership Seminar Series 2011

Seminars are scheduled from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Wednesdays in the UW Physics Astronomy Auditorium,  102A unless otherwise indicated*

Date

Speaker and Lecture Title

Sept. 28
Introduction to Class
Oct. 5 "What Can You Do with a ChemE Degree? My Story and Your Plan"
Rita Stevens PhD '82
President, Planning Matters LLC
Dr. Rita Stevens is a 1982 graduate of the UW Chemical Engineering PhD program, and a lifelong student of Professor John Berg. Through her career, Dr. Stevens has lead all aspects of new product conception, development and launch. Of particulate interest is her application of chemical engineering principles across a variety of sectors- from colloidal systems to public health- and within corporate, nonprofit and private consulting settings. Building on these lessons, she will recommend a practical framework for each student to develop an individual life plan.
Oct. 12
"A Midcareer Perspective"
Graham Bailey BS '85 
Domestic Newsprint Product Line Manager, Weyerhaeuser
This 30 minute presentation by Graham Bailey will provide an illustrated example of a path to a midcareer position by a previous graduate from the Chemical Engineering department.  The discussion will involve such topics as why a person loves his job, key decision points in a career plan, Newsprint Production, Weyerhaeuser future engineering needs, how to get the job you want and key learning’s gathered over the years.
Oct. 19 "Engineering and the Outdoors"
Pete Haggerty MS '80
Vice President of Technology, Cascade Designs, Inc.
Pete Haggerty is the Vice President of Technology at Cascade Designs, Inc., based in Seattle, Washington. For over thirty-five years, Cascade Designs has been dedicated to making premier outdoor, recreational, and medical rehabilitation products that enhance the active lifestyles of its customers. Through its enduring commitment to innovation, the company has built strong brands such as: Therm-a-Rest®, MSR® (Mountain Safety Research®), SealLine®, Platypus®, and Varilite®.
Oct. 26 "Statistics and Outliers — How to Stand Out"
Aaron Saks BS '07
Process Advancement Leader, Boise Inc.
Aaron Saks is a 2007 UW Graduate with degrees in Chemical Engineering and Paper Science and Engineering. After graduation, Aaron went to work for Boise Inc, as a Process Engineer at their Pulp and Paper Mill in Wallula, Washington. In 2008 Aaron became a Partner at Envoy Development, LLC, a software and consulting company based in Phoenix, Arizona. After managing the Boise, Inc account, Aaron returned to work for Boise in 2010, at his current position of Process Advancement Leader.
Nov. 2 "What the hell happened? From Chem E to making fortune cookies"
Camillo Cheng BS '76
Owner, Golden Pheasant Foods, LLC
Camillo Cheng bleeds purple and gold. A proud Husky, Camillo graduated from UW with a BS in Chemical Engineering, 1976 and a UW MBA, 1978. Camillo spent 20 years in the Specialty Chemical industry, rising to the CEO and minority owner of a privately held, regional, specialty chemical company. After helping to sell this company, Camillo embarked on a wholly different career—Golden Pheasant Foods, a manufacturer and importer of Asian Foods.
Nov. 9 TBA
Dan Evans BS '66
Dan Evans holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Washington and a MBA from the University of Oregon. In his seminar, Evans will discuss his work at JH Kelly, a family-owned construction company that provides HVAC and plumbing services to commercial facility owners. His presentation will highlight his basic business philosophy and role as an angel investor. The seminar will close with an open discussion.
Nov. 16 "A Sampling of Real-World Projects Encountered during the Course of a Career"
Michael J. Strand PhD '73
Former Vice President, Med Data
The speaker will discuss a variety of projects encountered during his career. Examples include computer simulations as well as bench, pilot and industrial scale processes. Projects involving collaborative efforts between medical and engineering teams are discussed. Examples of heat transfer projects and mass transfer projects are presented. The speaker will share some of his experiences encountered during the startup phase of Med-Data, Incorporated.
Mike Strand is one of four founders of Med-Data, which provides medical billing, coding, collections and management services to the medical community. He holds a B.Ch.E. degree from the University of Minnesota and a Ph.D. degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Washington.
Nov. 30
Kathryn Soucy PhD '91
Patent Prosecution Professional, Boeing
Working as a Patent Professional at The Boeing Company may not be the most likely position for a Chemical Engineer who received a Ph.D. based on research in chemical process control. In this seminar, I hope to provide insight into how my Chemical Engineering education, my years as a chemical engineer and technical project manager, and my choice to work at a large corporation, have together created an ideal foundation for my current role as a liaison between inventors, patent attorneys, and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Dec. 7
Will Rathvon BS "76
Retired Global Head — Resources, HSBC 
Will’s Chemical Engineering degree was instrumental for his success in the financial industry where he provided financial engineering advice and raised capital for numerous oil and refinery companies around the world. He led financial advisory transactions and raised capital of over $50 billion during his career. He began his career as a Chemical Engineer in the oil business and rose to managerial roles in both the upstream oil and refining business. He went on to get an MBA at Harvard Business School and entered the international banking business dedicated to advise and raise capital for oil and chemical companies. He rose to leadership positions in several banks leading teams of 200 people and managed a $1 billion business. Recently he held a CFO role for a small Indonesian start-up oil & gas company and helped raise seed capital of $225 million. In summary, Will has leveraged his Chemical Engineering and MBA degrees to help companies develop their process industries on an international basis.
 

Recommended Preparation

The course is intended for undergraduate and graduate students of chemical engineering.

Class Assignments and Grading

The class will be graded credit/no credit. Attendance is required at all class meetings; only excused absences will be permitted. An excused absence must be approved by the instructor prior to the missed class.

Engineering Elective Credit

This class counts as an engineering elective credit.
 
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