About the author
Robert Vines is a professional engineer who has risen to middle management in 4 Fortune 500 companies. At retirement, Robert was a Plant Manager at Lexmark International, the printer spin-off from IBM. In dealing personally with executives like Jack Welch, president of GE, and Dr. Jim Vanderslice, Senior Vice President of IBM and President of Dell Computer, he gained a unique insight into executive effectiveness as well as how they navigated the circuitous path to the top.
After retiring from Lexmark, he spent 4 years consulting, including assignments for Coopers & Lybrand and IBM specializing in polymer processing and new facilities start-ups.
He is a Distinguished Toastmaster and has been a frequent speaker at universities and technical conferences on Concurrent Engineering, Design for Manufacturability, and Off Shore Sourcing of Manufacturing. He is an avid environmentalist and has been a Texas Master Naturalist for 10 years regularly volunteering in state and local parks.