Joseph A. Rieger
3 Dominique Lane Home Phone : (860) 651-1168
Simsbury, CT 06070 Cell Phone:(860) 424-6740
Email: fhl-laughter@comcast.net
SUMMARY
Seventeen years of sales & marketing experience in a broad range of business-to-business segments: automotive, industrial and commercial. Products marketed include non woven & composite materials, electrical connectors & wiring systems and roller bearings. Strengths include the ability to identify opportunities, determine customer needs, develop value-added solutions and effectively sell value in cost-driven market segments. New business development through careful market research and a focused sales effort is one of my passions.
BUSINESS STRENGTHS
- Strong customer focus with the ability to listen to the customer, understand their manufacturing process and develop cost-effective solutions (ability to sell on the executive level and in the plant floor ranks).
- Good team player who can manage people/projects and effectively lead.
cross-functional and multinational teams of sales people, engineers, production planners and quality personnel. - Proven track record of profitable sales growth with experience in conducting global business operations for both small ($50 million) and large ($1.2 billion) divisions.
- Skilled strategist with a common sense approach to strategy formulation and execution.
CAREER HISTORY & ACCOMPLISHMENTS
ITT Cannon - VEAM (Watertown, CT) March 2002 – Feb. 2004
Marketing Manager – Industrial & Commercial
North American sales & marketing responsibility for VEAM’s Industrial and Commercial markets ($3.6 million sales). Special focus on new business development and transforming VEAM from a “job shop” to a strategic business unit that is market driven.
- Within five months, completed a comprehensive study of the automotive robotic welding market and crafted a detailed business plan to penetrate this complex market (includes action plan to achieve $5 million in new sales).
- Rectified a longstanding performance problem with VEAM’s welding connectors by forming a corrective action team, studying the application and incorporating cost-effective product improvements. This saved our business at Daimler-Chrysler and enabled VEAM to be sole-sourced on their new Brampton, Ontario welding line (for 2004 Chrysler LX platform: Concorde and Dodge Intrepid).
- Identified several niche opportunities within the robotic welding market and spearheaded the development of two promising product lines.
- Rapidly built solid relationships with key Detroit sales people and made significant inroads at carmakers, robot manufacturers and component distributors.
Ingersoll-Rand, Torrington Company(Torrington, CT) Apr. 2001- March 2002
Global Marketing Manager – Natural Resources & Construction (NRC)
Global marketing responsibility for the NRC Heavy Bearings unit ($110 million sales).
- Spearheaded the charge to transform this business unit from a domestic commodity supplier to a global provider of value-added solutions, components and services.
- Developed a strategic planning process for Torrington’s Natural Resource & Construction business unit (this $110 million unit had no formal business plan or planning process).
- Created eight Global Industry Teams to pool worldwide assets and direct resources towards specific market niches: Construction, Mining, Aggregate, Metals, Paper, Cement, Power Generation and Oilpatch.
- Directed Industry Team Leaders in the creation of eight individual business plans.
Ahlstrom-Dexter (Windsor Locks, CT) Feb. 1995 - Mar. 2001
Global Sales & Marketing Manager – Automotive Products 1998-2001
Global sales & marketing responsibility for the Automotive Group ($15 million sales). This included leading a cross-functional and multinational automotive team and determining the most efficient use of personnel and manufacturing assets in Europe and the USA.
- Helped lead Dexter’s worldwide sales team to revenues of $15 million in 2000 from $8.4 in 1997 (79% growth).
- After being acquired by Ahlstrom, spearheaded the integration of both company’s automotive businesses and formulated the strategic business plan.
Product Marketing Manager 1995-1998
Responsible for new business development of the North American automotive market and realized sales growth of roughly one million dollars each year. Involved in all aspects of sales & marketing: strategic planning, account management, marketing research, marketing communications, sales generation and forecasting.
- In one year, completed a market study of the automotive interiors market, developed & implemented a strategic plan and secured our first automotive sales in North America.
- Grew North American automotive sales from zero in 1995 to $5 million in 2000 (unit margin 67% above division average).
- Co-invented an environmentally friendly composite - made of natural fibers - that replaces fiberglass in automotive components (patent-pending).
Hubbell Inc., Wiring Device Division (Bridgeport, CT) 4/86- 2/95
Senior Product Manager – Commercial Building Products 1993-1995
Strategic planning & product management of six lines ($14 million sales).
- Penetrated the retail construction market by targeting major retail chains and writing national specifications at JC Penney, Federated Department Stores, The May Company, and Meijer Stores ($2.8 million in revenues).
- Initiated, designed and managed a distributor marketing program that increased national sales of building products by 14% in 1993 and 18% in 1994.
Product Manager – Commercial Building Products 1990-1993
Marketing responsibility for three product lines ($9 million sales).
- During a downturn in the commercial construction market and a U.S. recession, grew sales of building products by 30% and raised margin contribution by 28%.
- Introduced twelve new products that generated $2 million in incremental sales and $1 million in incremental profit margins.
Field Sales Representative (Boston, MA) 1986-1990
- $4.5 million sales territory – Managed electrical distributors, wrote specifications with OEMs
and generated end user demand in the industrial marketplace.
Sales Trainee – Graduate of an intensive six-month sales training program. 1986
EDUCATION
- MBA in Marketing, University of New Haven (3.98/4.0 GPA). 1994
- BS in Marketing, University of Connecticut (cum laude). 1985
- Military Service: Four years active duty in U.S. Navy (jet engine mechanic, honorably discharged in 1981).
Wow, if you’ve made it this far down the “About Joe Rieger” pike, you must either be my mother (hi Mom) or you’re really serious about getting to know who I am. Thank you for your interest.