{"id":8898,"date":"2017-08-24T07:00:27","date_gmt":"2017-08-24T15:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/2017\/08\/24\/news-2671\/"},"modified":"2017-08-24T07:00:27","modified_gmt":"2017-08-24T15:00:27","slug":"news-2671","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/2017\/08\/24\/news-2671\/","title":{"rendered":"Reflections on 41 years at Schneider Electric"},"content":{"rendered":"

Credit to Author: Kristen Larsen| Date: Thu, 24 Aug 2017 13:10:17 +0000<\/strong><\/p>\n

Written by Kristen Larsen<\/a>, guest blogger

I recently had the pleasure to talk on the phone with Mark Eckardt as he reflected on 41 years with Schneider Electric.\u00a0 He has spent many years of his career dedicated to SE, and driving growth with our top customers.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

The Beginning of a Great Career<\/h4>\n

On May 24, 1976, just one week after graduating from Bradley University with his electrical engineering degree, Mark Eckardt started working for Square D, in a small Illinois field office in a suburb of Chicago.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

His father was a senior manager at UL and had been the one to recommend Square D as a company to pursue a career with. \u00a0He had a lot of respect for Square D, the highest quality manufacturer in the industry, and Mark wanted to follow in his father\u2019s footsteps.\u00a0 He interviewed with the sales department, but was applying for a factory job as an engineer.\u00a0 After a few hours of interviews, the interviewer brought up the idea of a technical sales role.\u00a0 Mark responded negatively, \u201cI didn\u2019t go to engineering college to be a sales guy,\u201d he joked with me on the phone.\u00a0 But the more they chatted about the job, the more interesting it piqued Mark\u2019s interest.\u00a0 A Technical Sales role was not traditional sales, it involved talking about products and electrical systems, being a design engineer to sales, and not being stuck at a desk all day.\u00a0 Based on that interview, he said yes, and he never regretted the decision \u2013 he loved the job ever since.<\/p>\n

At the time, there were a lot of sales offices located throughout the US \u2013 with many small offices in small cities, where a one or two-man office was quite common.\u00a0 When reflecting, Mark commented, \u201cthings have changed dramatically in way company is organized since then.\u201d\u00a0 Mark went through a formal training program \u2013 4 weeks in Chicago, 8 weeks in Milwaukee, 7 weeks in Lexington, Kentucky to learn the ropes of his position and how the sales office worked.<\/p>\n

Moving Onto Sales<\/h4>\n

After training, he received his first permanent position in the Milwaukee field\/sales office, and so he and his newly married wife moved there, where they spent the next several years.\u00a0 In 1981, Mark was promoted to district sales manager in Duluth, Minnesota, and achieved some great accomplishments in that role.\u00a0 Despite the existence of a severe steel recession (the area\u2019s largest employer), sales were doubled from $1.1M to $2.8M.\u00a0 In 1986 he received the PWMD (People Who Make a Difference) award, a Schneider North America performance award, and A National Automation Sales award for obtaining a large ($350K) PLC order from DM&IR Railroad that had previously been exclusive Allen-Bradley account.<\/p>\n

\"\"He continued to find success in his sales career, receiving an award for being one of the top 5 sales offices in the US for adjustable frequency drive sales.\u00a0 Another key highlight was when he presented a paper at the IPC (International Programmable Controller) conference held in Detroit on DM&IR project.\u00a0 Mark\u2019s work was also published in several other publications including \u2018Programmable Controller\u2019 Magazine and the Square D \u2018In-plant Automation\u2019 magazine.<\/p>\n

The next step in his career journey took him to Toledo. Ohio for a district sales manager position with 9 people reporting to him.\u00a0 1.5 short years later he was offered a promotion in 1988 in San Francisco as a construction sales manager for Square D, with 50 inside and outside sales people reporting to him.<\/p>\n

A Shift into Marketing<\/h4>\n

Then he shifted his career from sales management and moved into marketing, holding a few different roles in regional and segment marketing.\u00a0 In 1995 he moved back to Midwest for personal reasons, returning to Milwaukee as a sales executive for the next 19 years.\u00a0 He moved up through the ranks and eventually obtained a global account manager role managing Kohler Power Systems and GE Wind Power.<\/p>\n

He had tremendous success with his Koler account, growing it from less than $1 million in sales to 10 million.\u00a0 He found similar success with GE.\u00a0 Throughout his entire career, Mark always remained passionate about customer satisfaction.\u00a0 In each role, he tried to make sure that the customer thought of Square D or later Schneider Electric as being the single best company in the world that they can deal with.\u00a0 That was not always an easy feat for a company as complex as Schneider Electric.\u00a0 With such a robust offering and global scope, we may look like a single company to customer, but we\u2019re made up of all different business units and products.\u00a0 In his roles, he always tried to provide a cohesive company view to his customers and ensure that our customers thought we were the best possible company they could do business with.\u00a0 He also won 3 PWMD awards (people who make a difference) throughout his career for his dedication and hard work.<\/p>\n

Focusing on Strategic Accounts<\/h4>\n

In 2014 he moved back to San Francisco taking a job as a Strategic Account Executive (SAE) Apple account manager.\u00a0 In this role, he focused on strategy and taking care of the Apple account, including tactical implementation of long term\/short term goals.\u00a0 He relocated to CA made him closer to the Apple Headquarters, and was now supervising global account team members located in China, Singapore, Vietnam, Canada, India, Germany, France, and Italy. \u00a0\u00a0He had come a long way from his days of working in a one-man office in Minnesota!<\/p>\n

For each of Schneider Electric\u2019s large Global Strategic Accounts (GSAs), there is an SAE in charge of the customer \/ company globally.\u00a0 This meant anything having to do with Schneider and Apple fell to Mark\u2019s responsibility.\u00a0 Since the role had a global scope, Mark had people dotted line reporting to him in many different managers in other countries.\u00a0 He also had an army of dotted line reports to help maintain a strong relationship with Apple ranging from global support people to specialists and solution architects across entire world.\u00a0 Each person specialized in a certain area of the business, but dotted line reported to Mark whenever they were working with Apple.\u00a0 The Apple account has grown significantly since Mark stepped into the role, bringing in 35 million euros last year (2016), and a projected 45-50 million euros this year.<\/p>\n

Why Stay with Schneider Electric?<\/h4>\n

Over the years, Mark had many opportunities to leave the company.\u00a0 He received the occasional call from headhunters over the years, and at one time while living in Milwaukee, he seriously thought about starting a consulting engineering firm with a few friends (in retrospect \u2013 he says he\u2019s glad he didn\u2019t!)<\/p>\n

He always felt extremely lucky to work for a company with big benefits that treated him fairly.\u00a0 Mark worked hard and had many opportunities for promotion and internal growth, always felt it was a very satisfying career, never had enough reason to ever think about leaving. \u00a0\u00a0\u201cI never thought I\u2019d work with Square D for 40 years \u2013 but I never had a strong reason to ever leave.\u201d<\/p>\n

He reflected that he was also very blessed with great managers that he worked for.\u00a0 \u201cI had many different managers, almost all have been really great people to work for.\u00a0 Some of my best friends are still people I worked for even now that I stay in contact with and will after I retire.\u201d\"Join<\/a><\/p>\n

Retirement\u2026 What Next?<\/h4>\n

Now that he is retiring, Mark reflected on how his job was not just a job, but a life career and a passion of his \u2013 and \u201chow am I going to replace that when I retire?\u201d\u00a0 \u201cThis was more than just a job; it has been my life\u201d.<\/p>\n

Mark and his wife Pam have built their dream home in Tucson, AZ with a pool, spa, fire pit, and great view of the mountains.\u00a0 Their plans are to continue their love of travel with good food and wine.<\/p>\n

Mark has made many connections all over the world working in a global role over the years.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s one of the benefits of a global job \u2013 I have met so many nice people, both customers and Schneider employees.\u00a0 Now I have lots of friends that have invited us to come visit them around the world!\u201d\u00a0 He and his wife plan to visit Singapore, China, London, and many other places to spend time with former colleagues and friends.<\/p>\n

He also plans to fill his free time getting involved in his local community, whether helping kids, tutoring, or getting involved in Habitat for Humanity.\u00a0 He hasn\u2019t figured out exactly what he will devote his time to in Tucson, but knows he wants to help give back.\u00a0 He is also looking forward to getting back into sports: golf, softball, and tennis.\u00a0 \u201cI played in the Milwaukee Square D Softball league, and I\u2019d like to get back into that.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Career Advice<\/h4>\n

When asked about sharing advice for someone just starting out in their career, Mark suggested reaching out to other colleagues.\u00a0 \u201cIt is really easy to be scared by the complexities of a business or company.\u00a0 \u00a0But there\u2019s an awful lot of good people in our company that can help you.\u00a0 It\u2019s not always easy or comfortable to reach out, especially when dealing with a 150k+ employee company, but there\u2019s a lot of great people in this company willing to help you advance your career.\u201d<\/p>\n

Things have certainly changed over the years, and now it seems younger generations don\u2019t typically think about staying at same company for decades.\u00a0 Though it\u2019s not as common as it used to be, there are still a lot of people that have been with company for years.<\/p>\n

As someone who is 7 years into their career with Schneider Electric, it was inspiring to hear about Mark\u2019s journey over the past 40 years and how he was able to grow within Schneider Electric into his dream role.\u00a0 I\u2019d like to personally thank Mark for his dedication to Schneider Electric, and wish him a relaxing and adventurous retirement!<\/p>\n

\"\"About Mark: <\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Mark Eckardt joined Schneider Electric on May 24, 1976, and has recently retired after 41 years with the company.\u00a0 His most recent role was the Strategic Account Executive for Apple Computer.\u00a0 He has held various positions across the United States, and remarks that, \u201cI have had a great career and have been lucky to have made many great friends both at SE and customers.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n
\n

Learn about Career Opportunities<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Follow Schneider Electric Careers on Social Media.<\/p>\n

\"Schneider<\/a>\u00a0\"Schneider<\/a>\u00a0\"Schneider<\/a>\u00a0\"Schneider<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\"\"About the author:<\/strong>
Kristen (Krissy) Larsen is an Employee Branding Social Media Specialist for Schneider Electric in North America. She graduated from Bryant University with a degree in Marketing and Literary and Cultural Studies, and started with Schneider Electric in 2011. Krissy\u00a0is passionate about Schneider Electric’s community programs, and is on the leadership council for our Community Impact program. \u00a0Outside of work, she regularly performs with a musical improv comedy troupe, and enjoys spending time with her husband and two dogs.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The post Reflections on 41 years at Schneider Electric<\/a> appeared first on Schneider Electric Blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n

http:\/\/blog.schneider-electric.com\/feed\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Credit to Author: Kristen Larsen| Date: Thu, 24 Aug 2017 13:10:17 +0000<\/strong><\/p>\n

Written by Kristen Larsen, guest blogger I recently had the pleasure to talk on the phone with Mark Eckardt as he reflected on 41 years with Schneider Electric.\u00a0 He has… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n

The post Reflections on 41 years at Schneider Electric<\/a> appeared first on Schneider Electric Blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[12389,12388],"tags":[13242,13901,13902,13725,14039,12824,12672,14040],"class_list":["post-8898","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-scadaics","category-schneider","tag-career","tag-career-mobility","tag-career-perspectives","tag-employee-spotlight","tag-hr","tag-life-schneider-blog","tag-life-at-schneider-electric","tag-retirement"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8898","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8898"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8898\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8898"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8898"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8898"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}