Alumnus shares life-building stories

On Thursday, March 13, Joe Matthews, a 1991 electrical engineering graduate from Rose-Hulman, presented a talk entitled “Electrical Engineering to Sourcing Executive.” The presentation was sponsored by the Rose-Hulman Diversity Council and focused on Matthews’ successes and experiences in the workplace.

Matthews is currently the sourcing director of the supply chain of Global Strategic Sourcing at Whirlpool Corporation. In his presentation, he discussed the values system at Whirlpool. He also explained how he has applied those values throughout his career, both before and during his time at Whirlpool. These values include diversity and inclusion, integrity, respect, teamwork, and the spirit of winning. During his presentation, Matthews focused heavily on the importance and benefits of diversity within an organization. Matthews explained, “In order to be successful, you have to have diversity where people feel free to express themselves.” He also focused on respect. He repeatedly stated, “Treat others the way you want to be treated.”

Another key point that Matthews focused on was allowing oneself to come out of one’s comfort zone. Matthews stated, “When you go to an environment unfamiliar to you, the worst thing you can do is draw into yourself.” He explained that his first transition out of his comfort zone was coming to Rose-Hulman for his undergraduate degree. Matthews attended high school in Gary, Indiana, and Terre Haute was the furthest he had ever been from home. Additionally, Matthews went from attending an all-black high school to being the only black person in his class. After graduation, Matthews made another large transition by moving to Japan. Matthews explained, “You don’t realize how big a transition is until you look backwards.” Matthews expressed his key to being successful in situations where he was part of a minority. He stated, “Integrity and being genuine transcends cultures.”

After working in the electrical engineering field for several years, Matthews decided to go into business and management. He advised, “Do things that are different, because you might learn something.” Matthews has been very successful as a manager and suggested students to “improvise and adapt in management.”

At the end of the presentation, Matthews commented on the most important things he learned while at Rose-Hulman. “The thing I got from Rose is a problem- solving methodology. You understand what you know. You understand what you don’t know. Rose-Hulman education taught me how to solve problems.”