2005 EE Leadership Seminar Speakers
Wednesdays, 3:30 - 4:20 p.m.
EE1 105
This winter quarter seminar series is a unique opportunity for students to hear from some leading executives who all have one thing in common - a degree from the UW EE department! They provide leadership to companies as diverse as Philips Ultrasound (formerly ATL Ultrasound), T-Mobile and Genie Industries all the way to the Professional Bowlers Association (yes, with an EE degree you, too, could run the PBA!).
Each week one of these top executives will share their insights on the skills, attributes and approaches that can lead to outstanding careers. This is intended to be a fun and informative seminar that puts our students in touch with professionals in the field they otherwise might not have the opportunity to meet.
January 5
A laboratory job led Don Baker into ultrasound research as a junior EE
major. By1967 he had developed the first pulsed Doppler and duplex
scanner instruments, devices that would revolutionize medical practice
worldwide. In 1979 he left his UW faculty research position to help
launch ATL Ultrasound (now Philips Ultrasound). As a visionary inventor
and entrepreneur, Baker helped lead bioengineering into the forefront of
the healthcare industry and transformed Seattle into the "ultrasound
capital of the world." Baker's pioneering devices are on display at the
Smithsonian's Museum of Medical History in Washington, D.C.
January 12
Robert Trimble, a real estate developer and investor, is president of
R&B Development Corp. He is a co-owner of the Seattle International
Trade Center and the Black River Corporate Park in Renton. Trimble
earned BSEE and MBA degrees at the UW and started his career as a design
engineer at Boeing, then moved into management positions evaluating and
hiring engineers and also held engineering management assignments for
the 707, 727, 737, and SST aircraft. From Boeing he embarked in 1970 on
an entrepreneurial adventure by founding Everett-based Tramco, which
grew into one of the nation's largest airplane repair and modification
firms. He sold the company to B.F. Goodrich in 1990. Building the Tramco
facilities led to his new career chapter in real estate development.
January 19
Bror Saxberg is innovating on the front lines of Internet education as
senior vice president and chief learning officer for K12, Inc., which
provides elementary and middle school curricula for home-based learning.
His career experiences have included management positions in educational
testing, acquisition of technology-based media companies, business
development and marketing for a multimedia publishing company, and
management consulting for technology and medical industries. At the UW,
Saxberg double majored in EE and mathematics and won the President's
Medal. He earned an MA in math as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford, an MD from
Harvard Medical School, and MS and PhD degrees in artificial
intelligence from MIT's Department of Electrical Engineering and
Computer Science. He is based in the Los Angeles area.
January 26
Chris Peters followed an unusual trajectory from UW bachelor's and
master's degrees in EE to chairman of the Professional Bowler's
Association. First, he signed on as Microsoft's 105th employee and spent
16 years as a programmer and manager, helping to develop software such
as Word and Excel. In 1998 he joined a venture capital firm and took up
recreational bowling. In 1991 he and several partners jumped at the
opportunity to buy the PBA, a declining membership organization with an
image mired in a 1950's time capsule. With business savvy and marketing
pizzazz, they transformed the PBA into a private corporation with 4,000
pro-bowler members in 11 countries, an ESPN contract, 16 corporate
sponsors, and 20 official events in 17 states.
February 2
George Johnson joined the analytical skills gained with a BSEE from the
UW to an MBA from the Wharton School of Finance and embarked an a career
path through investment research and management for Safeco Insurance
Co., to management positions in the Seattle banking sector. He is now
president of Breuggeman and Johnson Capital, a company he co-founded in
1988. The firm specializes in financial analysis and calculation of
economic damages for a broad range of personal legal cases and complex
corporate disputes. Johnson also consults on corporate finance and
provides acquisition/divestiture support.
February 9
Mark Robison is an electrical and mechanical engineer with more than 30
years experience in the building design industry. In 1985 he bounded
Abacus Engineered Systems, which became one of the largest engineering
firms in the Northwest. He sold his interest in Abacus in 2000 and
founded Robison Engineering, based in Shoreline. The firm serves the
architectural community with design and analysis for mechanical,
plumbing, and electrical systems. Hotels and restaurants are the primary
focus, and Robinson is the West Coast Region troubleshooter for Marriott
hotels. Clients also include a broad array of commercial, industrial,
government, educa-tion, and military facilities. Robison earned his BSEE
at UW and is a licensed PE in 19 states.
February 16
As chief technical officer and executive vice president of engineering
and operations for T-Mobile USA, Timothy Wong directs a team of 2200
employees and manages a $2 billion capital budget. With 15 million
customers, Redmond-based T-Mobile is one of the fastest growing wireless
companies in the nation. After receiving his BSEE from the UW in 1978,
Wong held engineering positions in a succession of communications
companies including Pacific Northwest Bell, AT&T, US West New Vector
Group, and Western Wireless Corp.
February 23
Gregory Koskowich is vice president for research and development at
Sonic Innovations, Inc., a Salt Lake City company that manufactures
digital hearing aids. He previously was vice president for product
development at IMP, Inc., a San Jose company that designs, manufactures
and markets high-performance, standard analog integrated circuits.
Earlier, he was manager of microelectronic engineering at the North
American Group of GN ReSound, a Danish company that designs and
manufactures hearing aids. Koskowich earned his doctorate in electrical
engineering at the UW and BSEE and MSEE degrees at the University of
Calgary.
March 2
Jerry Knoll is vice president of Redmond-based, Genie Industries, a
company that manufactures forklifts and has customers in 72 countries
worldwide. The company is active in the College of Engineering's Co-op
Program. Knoll also served Genie as chief financial officer from 1989 to
April 2001. He earned B.S. degrees in EE and IE and also an MBA at the
UW.
March 9
Melanie Veazey is vice president of Burgermaster, the nationwide burger
chain. She earned her B.S. in EE at the UW.