Summer 2005

Meet this Year’s Career Achievement Award Winners

Mark Federle Leads Information Effort For Billion Dollar Company

by David Piker

Mark Federle has had a good career coach for 20 years. It’s a career that has taken Federle from being an award winning professor to the head of the nation’s largest education program in construction engineering to chief information officer for a billion dollar construction company.

His career path wasn’t a surprise. Buildings were part of the discussion around the Federle household. His father was a civil engineer, and Mark’s summer employment meant work at construction sites.

Federle was attracted to Rose-Hulman because its size was similar to Indianapolis Cathedral High School where he graduated in 1981. Small classes resulted in interaction with civil engineering professors that Federle remembers motivated him to take school a bit more seriously.

It was during his freshman year that his coach first had an influence on him. An influence that Federle says continues 20 years later.

“I saw the passion that Jim McKinney had for teaching. That influenced me then and continues to motivate me today,” Federle recalled.

“He has had a tremendous influence on my life,” Federle stated. “The best compliment is to call him coach. He's coached me through many career decisions. I wouldn't have gone to graduate school without his encouragement,” said Federle.

A slow economy at the time of his graduation, along with McKinney's encouragement and a graduate school fellowship meant Federle and his bride, Michele, were headed to the University of Michigan.

After earning a master’s degree, he went to work for a small general contractor. His coach’s influence again had an impact on his career decision.

“It didn't take long for the academic bug to bite me,” he explained.

“It was the influence that McKinney and others like Cecil Lobo had on students that really interested me,” said Federle.

After receiving his doctorate from the University of Michigan, Federle became an assistant professor of construction engineering at Iowa State University in 1990.

“I wanted to teach undergraduates,” said Federle, whose lectures often included his notes from McKinney and Lobo classes.

He learned well from his coach. He received outstanding teacher awards from three different organizations, and was named Iowa State's College of Engineering Advisor of the Year. Federle was chosen to be the professor-in-charge of the university's construction engineering program. The program enrolls about 300 students and is considered the largest of its kind in the United States.

However, administrative chores coupled with increasing university bureaucracy led Federle to “think about doing something different.”

After a talk with his coach, Federle left academia in 1999 to become director of information technology for The Weitz Company in Des Moines, Iowa. The 150-year-old company is the oldest contractor west of the Mississippi. It has 13 locations and works in 30 states each year. The company is involved in a variety of projects with most of its work in the areas of senior housing, resort construction, multi-family (condo), commercial, retail and hospitality as well as hotel construction.

Weitz President and CEO Glenn De Stigter said Federle's job was to become the senior information technology executive for the company.

“Over the next six years, under his leadership, Weitz has completely changed our technology infrastructure and investment. We now have the technology tools that will allow Weitz to achieve our strategic goals related to revenue and profitability,” De Stigter said in a letter supporting Federle's nomination for the Rose-Hulman Career Achievement Award.

Federle did a bit of coaching himself when he spoke to about 100 civil engineering majors during his visit to campus to accept his award.

Federle told the students to maintain their core values while they sort through career choices. He advised them it was very important to find their own coaches. The students were reminded to give back to their community and to create a balance between work and other important aspects of their lives.

Good advice from a person who has been well coached.

Jeff Gilbert Heads Successful Computer Software Company

by Dale Long

It may have been almost 20 years ago, but Jeff Gilbert vividly recalls the details of the first business deal for an upstart Indianapolis computer software development company formed in 1988 by four enterprising Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology graduates.

Six months of scrounging through industry directories, newspapers and telephone books had failed to result in one business client. The founding partners were living off their dwindling life’s savings; the company’s weekly payroll was the amount of cash needed to feed each worker’s family; and the computer system was a patchwork system of wires connected through holes in the wall between adjacent apartment rooms.

Then, the military’s Fort Benjamin Harrison financial process center in Indianapolis needed a computer system to assist in accounting services.

“We went from developing sophisticated electronic warfare and satellite communications systems to doing accounting and payroll software, but it paid the bills. It’s funny how your pride gets pushed aside when you have mouths to feed,” concedes Gilbert, chuckling at the memory.

“I knew that starting a business was going to be a challenge, but I was very naïve about what to expect. We had no idea. Fortunately SEP has always had great people and I have been surrounded by them. They make my job easy.”

Joining Gilbert in the venture were Anthony Montgomery, Tim Shoemaker and Mike Fouch, all Rose-Hulman 1986 computer science graduates. Fouch is no longer with the company.

Since that first project, Software Engineering Professionals, Inc. (SEP) has concentrated on its core principles: Solving software-related problems that matter, seeking people who care and building relationships that work. It is a company of engineers run by engineers that decided to concentrate on being good and doing what is right first, believing that success would follow.

And, success has come along the way. Today, SEP boasts annual sales of $6 million, has 60 devoted employees and a stable of clients in the medical, healthcare, automotive and military industries. The company recently moved into spacious new offices in Carmel, IN.

“We’re moving up the food chain,” Gilbert states. “We’re becoming more diverse and moving into data-critical and regulated markets. We used to be exclusively known for our engineering and technical expertise. Now we’re doing business application development and getting into data-critical applications. There are a lot of exciting, high-impact problems to be solved in these markets. We’re having fun.”

In recent years, SEP has launched several business and technology ventures. Shoemaker served as president of Vigilance Medical Technologies, which develops connectivity technology that brings patient-centric information from medical devices to the clinician. Other entrepreneurial enterprises have been Theron, Inc., a joint venture between SEP and a group of former Roche Diagnostics managers that focuses primarily in the life sciences sector; and EnerGenuity, a year-old venture that provides consulting and technical services to energy companies.

“We’re good at what we do,” said Gilbert. “We sell our next project on the good job we’ve done on the last project. We work very hard at developing and keeping relationships with our clients. Overall, we can never get satisfied. If we do, we’ve stopped learning.”

Taking that advice to heart, Gilbert started taking classes two years ago in Rose-Hulman’s engineering management graduate degree program. He is also a member of the Department of Applied Biology and Biomedical Engineering’s Board of Advisors, has sponsored the Annual Fund’s Senior Give Back Challenge, recruits heavily on campus for seniors to join SEP’s stable of RHIT alumni (39 and growing), and provides internships.

“Everything I’ve learned, I’ve learned by doing. If we would have planned more, we wouldn’t have done it. We haven’t been afraid to take risks,” stated the Farmersburg, Ind., native. “I really like my job. Every day is different. The issues cover every part of the company.”

Gilbert and his wife, Deanna, have four children and have operated a home for unwed mothers in the Indianapolis area.

Morgan Tharp Helps Create Cancer Treatment Center

by Kevin Lanke

Dr. Morgan Tharp has relied on the cutting edge technology of medicine and the economic principals of business to create an innovative cancer diagnosis and treatment center in the state of Indiana.

In 1997, Tharp joined three oncology physicians to create Central Indiana Radiation Oncology, now known as the Central Indiana Cancer Center (CICC). Their efforts created a $7 million, state-of-the-art cancer treatment center in Indianapolis. Today, the organization includes more than 150 employees at four sites around Indiana’s capitol city.

Tharp and his colleagues have established a center with two underlying principles. First and foremost, CICC strives to offer the best health care system and plans available in every situation. Second, CICC must remain at the cutting edge of technology to stay competitive in the current medical environment.

“Medicine can be a balancing attack between providing care and running a business. The best part of job is just being a physician. The highlight of my working life is to see a cancer patient cured, then watch a grown adult cry with joy when given a clean bill of health,” said Tharp, a native of Columbus, Ind.

The business aspect of running a cancer center is a necessary part of the medical field. CICC utilizes newly developed technologies to remain competitive. In turn, patients see the benefits from new procedures or methods of recovery that were previously unavailable. Tharp has helped oversee a number of innovations at CICC to remain at the top of the technological curve.

“We’ve used a new prostate cancer treatment that is only available in approximately 20 centers in the nation to complete over 450 procedures. In addition, we’ve developed high dose rate brachytherapy programs, added intensity modulation radiation therapy, and improved immuno-targeted radiotherapy for lymphoma. Previously, we became the first breast cancer mammogram site treatment center in the state of Indiana,” noted Tharp.

The road to radiation oncology was a successful plan of undergraduate and medical education for Tharp. He spent one year at Florida Bible College to gain background in a central part of his life, then transferred to Rose-Hulman as a sophomore with the goal of becoming a biomedical engineer.

One key Rose-Hulman faculty member helped Tharp slightly alter his vision for the future.

“(President Emeritus) Dr. Hulbert’s biomedical engineering class was the main reason I knew medical school was for me. He taught a course that combined engineering with health care, and convinced me that I could help more people through medicine than biomedical engineering. I’m glad he talked me out of a master’s degree and toward medical school,” said Tharp.

While at Rose-Hulman, Tharp served as a resident assistant during his senior year. The life lessons learned as a resident assistant still help him today.

“I was a shy person, but Pete and Donna Gustafson forced me to open up and become a leader. I developed friendships that lasted through tough times, and made for a nice transition into my career. The biggest part of my career is to communicate and build trust with patients, and being a resident assistant was my first test in that area.”

After earning his degree in electrical engineering in 1985, Tharp graduated from the Indiana University medical school program in 1989.

Outside of the working world, Tharp cites religion as the central part of his life. His future goals include donating even more time to the Church of Christ in Indianapolis, where he currently serves as a deacon. His remaining time is spent with his wife Jenny and daughters Lauren, Jessica and Rachel.

When the work becomes overwhelming, Tharp thinks back to the many memorable moments in a career filled with helping others. His very first patient comes immediately to mind.

“The first patient that I ever saw had a serious case of prostate cancer and could barely walk. He was ecstatic after the treatment. He could get out of the chair and walk, hugged the entire medical team, and was the happiest patient I have seen in my life. Helping improve a patient’s health is still the most rewarding aspect of my career.”

Tom Vanderlann Directs Global Sales For Remy International

by Bryan Taylor

In Tom VanderLaan’s world of global high-tech sales, the 55-year-old electric typewriter sitting on his desk might seem out of place, but Tom would tell you otherwise. The machine serves as a reminder of how important it is to stay abreast of new technologies and practices in business.

“The only possible use for that machine now is as a boat anchor,” VanderLaan said providing an example of how technologies can become out of date. “I don’t want to be the typewriter repair guy 20 years from now.” VanderLaan speaks with some authority about the changing nature of the typewriter business, through the years his father made a living servicing typewriters.

Keeping current and informed has been a staple of VanderLaan’s career as director of sales and marketing for Remy International. He directs the company’s global sales activities, focusing on Ford, General Motors and its affiliates (Opel, Fiat, Saab, Daewoo, Isuzu, Subaru and Suzuki) for starters, alternators and hybrid motors.

In addition to the USA, he works in markets in Japan, India, China, Korea and Europe. “Globalization is my life at this point,” he said. “We have to deliver at a local level while negotiating at a global scale.” VanderLaan attacks the global market from his base in Detroit working with a team of sales managers around the world. The global headquarters of Remy is based in Anderson, Ind.

During the three years VanderLaan has been with Remy, his team has managed the $225 million base business and achieved $80 million of new starter, alternator and hyrbrid motor business. This included the first starter program in China , the first alternator program in South America and the first passenger vehicle hybrid motor award.

That global aspect provides the biggest challenge for VanderLaan who describes it as “mindboggling.” He cited cultural and time zone issues affecting deadline dates and the need for local representatives to know the language. Travel also is a regular part of his life as evidenced by the 1 million miles racked up on Northwest Airlines.

VanderLaan attributes success in the business to “managing the customer relationships in an effective way.” The biggest rewards come, he said, “when you get that phone call from purchasing that says those contracts you work on have been awarded. I get to convey that to the company, and it is a true reward for creating that sense of team across the company.”

General Motors did not let Remy’s success go unnoticed as it named the Anderson, Ind.-based company “Supplier of the Year” for 2004.

Customer service experience started early for VanderLaan who made service calls with his typewriter-repairing father in Cleveland when he was 15 years of age. The work ethic established during his teen years came to Rose-Hulman where he earned a degree in electrical engineering and mathematics.

Upon graduation from Rose-Hulman, VanderLaan began his career with Packard Electric Division of General Motors (currently Delphi Packard Electric Systems). In 1990, he moved to Flint, Mich., to take a position as a resident engineer at the customer, Flint Automotive Division. He then became the first Delphi Packard engineering manager to serve on the staff of the customer.

In 1998, he joined Visteon to manage advanced projects development for systems integration and to determine supply strategy. That led to his proposal to establish a joint venture with Sumitomo Electric Industries, forming AutoNeural Systems, where he became general manager in 1999. After two years in the position, he joined the Ford Customer Business Unit, initially being responsible for the profit and loss for $50 million of electrical/electronic products on the Ford Mustang.

From there, he joined Remy, which had put forth an aggressive mandate for growth. To match that growth mandate, VanderLaan continues to look ahead, citing the potential in the hybrid vehicle market and developing opportunities in China.

While he equates looking to the future as a combination of planning and “reading the tea leaves,” VanderLaan need look no further than his desk for an outdated technological reminder of the importance of staying abreast of advances in his field. His goal is to keep alternators and starters from becoming desk ornaments for future generations.