Werner Electric Supply (Appleton, WI)
Dave Piet is the Werner Electric’s new VP of sales and will establish and lead its long-term vision for the industrial and construction sales teams. This includes business transformation, change management, services, organizational performance and accountability.
Piet (photo above) brings more than 29 years of progressive experience in sales leadership for large manufacturing and distributor organizations, holding leadership roles in international sales, marketing and business development. His most recent positions include regional sales director for Belden, VP of global sales for Pentair and principal for STTW. Piet earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing communications and business administration from St. Norbert College.
In other news at Werner Electric, the company hired three new employees during May, according to a LinkedIn post: Lisa Butterfield, industrial coordinator; Brad Richter, director of industrial services; and Tristan Vukosich, network solutions quotation specialist.
Electri-Flex (Roselle, IL)
Brock Klein is now director of sales & marketing, a promotion from his previous responsibilities as national sales manager. Klein began his career in sales 13 years ago, progressively advancing through business development, product management and sales growth. He came to Electri-Flex five years ago and quickly moved from regional sales manager to national sales manager.
Agilix Solutions (St. Louis, MO)
Dave Armstrong has joined the Agilix Solutions team as VP of South Region and will be based in the company’s Memphis branch. A 25-year veteran in the electrical market, Armstrong will lead the company’s efforts to grow the Agilix Solutions brand across its seven branches in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi. Prior to joining the Agilix Solutions team, he served in key roles for several distribution companies. Most recently he held the role of vice president of sales for Atlas Lighting Products, Burlington, NC.
Agilix Solutions was formed in 2021 by the merger of St. Louis-based French Gerleman and Memphis-based IAC Supply Solutions. The newly formed company now ranks among Electrical Wholesaling’s 50 largest electrical distributors in the North America.
National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) (Rosslyn, VA)
Sonia Vahedian was appointed COO. She joins NEMA from the American Petroleum Institute (API), where she served as the VP of revenue generating programs. While with API, Vahedian drove strategy and launched several mission-critical API programs; increased revenues by more than $2.5 million; established a Covid-19 strategy to mitigate potential business losses; and helped define and launch an industry-wide effort to enhance diversity equity and inclusion.
Vahedian began her career in energy, where she served in various industry segments in business development, technical and operational roles with BP/Amoco, Statoil/Equinor and Kinder Morgan in the Midcontinent and Appalachian Regions. Vahedian has a B.S. in chemical engineering & material science from the University of Oklahoma.
North Central Electrical Manufacturers Club (NCEMC) (Bloomington, MN)
Randy Kuzel, sales specialist at AJB Sales, has been elected by the 167 members of the North Central Electrical Manufacturers Club as their 85th president, serving a one-uzel succeeds Joe Shallbetter, who completed his one-year term as president on May 20.
The 2022-23 NCEMC Board of Director election results are listed below:
President: Randy Kuzel, AJB Sales, Minneapolis
Vice President: Chris Lee, MRL Co., St. Paul, MN
Secretary: Pete Deeg, Rouzer Group, St. Louis Park, MN
Treasurer: Nate Boike, Burndy, Eden Prairie, MN
Past President: Joe Shallbetter, States Electric Manufacturing, Minneapolis
Director – 1 yr. term: Ashley Suess, 3M Electrical Products, Columbus, MN
Director – 1 yr. term: Matt Taets, RAB Lighting, Northvale, NJ
Director – 2 yr. term: Tim McNaboe, EMS Partners, Lakeville, MN
Director – 2 yr. term: Wyatt Shallbetter, States Electric Manufacturing, Minneapolis
Director – 3 yr. term: Alanna Harper, AJB Sales, Minneapolis
Director – 3 yr. term: Robert Smith, Hubbell Wiring, Shelton, CT
EdisonReport (Brentwood, TN)
Mark Lien, a 35-year veteran of the lighting industry, will receive EdisonReport’s Lifetime Achievement Award on June 20 at LightFair. Lien most recently served as the industry relations manager for the Illuminating Engineering Society and is known throughout the market for his time as an educator and manager at large lighting companies including Sylvania, Hubbell Lighting and Cooper Lighting.
Rockwell Automation Inc. (Milwaukee, WI): Tessa Myers has been named senior VP, Intelligent Devices, effective June 6. She reports to Rockwell Automation Chairman and CEO Blake Moret. In this role, Myers is responsible for leading strategy, product and talent development for the Intelligent Devices business segment. Myers succeeds Fran Wlodarczyk, who is retiring in early 2023 after more than 35 years with Rockwell.
Myers was most recently VP and general manager for the Production Operations Management Software business unit within the company’s Software & Control operating segment, overseeing product strategy, product management and business operations.
Since joining Rockwell in 1999, she has built broad global industry expertise with leadership roles in sales, channel and partner management, business unit leadership and product development across hardware and software, working in the U.S., Canada and Singapore. Myers holds a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering from Purdue University and an MBA from the University of Michigan.
RTI (Shakopee, MN)
Control and automation manufacturer RTI hired Randy Logan as channel management director to develop and manage the company’s distribution partners to benefit all integrators working with RTI control solutions. Prior to joining RTI, he was director of channel marketing at Nortek Security & Control and before that, at Core Brands. RTI’s portfolio includes remotes, touch panels, control processors and its Integration Designer programming software.