"The goal is to make engineers highly effective in the corporate world."
About Chris
Before becoming a business leader in the automotive industry, engineer Chris Searles enjoyed a successful career in innovation. During this time he noticed that, for the most part, the most successful employees possessed a good understanding of basic business principles and corporate dynamics—something he felt engineering professionals should learn at the university level.
"The goal is to make engineers highly effective in the corporate world," says Chris, now managing director for Mckesson Corporation. "This corresponds closely with the concept of 'T-shaped' people. A T-shaped person is one who has deep knowledge within one discipline (engineering, the vertical bar) and broad knowledge about how it interacts with other disciplines (business, the horizontal bar). Today's companies are seeking engineers with these types of skills and many leaders are starting to respond with mentorships that prepares our future leaders to successfully integrate business and science."
“I’ve learned a lot from mentors who were instrumental in shaping me, and I want to share what I’ve learned," says Chris, who coaches and supports engineers wanting to navigate the business world.
