Fred Cartwright spent 33 years at General Motors, starting as an engineer in Indianapolis and rising to become vice president of General Motors Europe. He joined Clemson University in 2013 as executive director of the International Center for Automotive Research. He returned to Indianapolis in 2018 as president of the startup PRUV Mobility, before joining Conexus last July, where he leads the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership organization that is focused on manufacturing and logistics industries. He is also co-founder and served as vice chair of Electricore, the Mid-America Electric Vehicle Consortium.
Hobbies: “running, reading, music and learning”
Reading: “Forces for Good: The Six Practices of High-Impact Nonprofits,” by Leslie Crutchfield and Heather McLeod Grant
Toughest challenge: “Launching new products, partnerships and programs when naysayers question every move.”
Leah Curry is president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana, where she leads all production and administrative functions at a 4.5-million-square-foot facility in Princeton that produces the Toyota Highlander, Highlander Hybrid and all-hybrid Sienna. She came to Indiana in 2019 after serving as president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia, a transmissions and engines manufacturing plant. She serves on the boards of The Manufacturing Institute, Deaconess Health Systems, Evansville Regional Economic Partnership and The Evansville Regional Business Committee. Curry has twice been named one of the “Top 100 Women in Automotive” by Automotive News.
Hobbies: “I enjoy interior decorating. I love how a few changes can transform the look and feel of a space. Currently, I am obsessed with refinishing furniture with chalk paint. It is such an easy and inexpensive way to give an old piece a fresh new look.”
Walk-up song: “My walk-up song would be a strong female power anthem like ‘Respect,‘ by Aretha Franklin, or ‘I Am Woman,‘ by Helen Reddy.”
In 1946, Ardelle Glaze founded Fort Wayne Metals, which makes medical-grade wire, and nearly 40 years later, his son Scott Glaze took over as CEO and then chair. Today, the company has about 1,200 employees at its headquarters in Fort Wayne, with additional operations in Ohio and Ireland. In 2020, the company introduced the James Project on Fort Wayne‘s southeast side, turning a former department store into a production and training facility with the goal of helping non-traditional workers with on-the-job education. Glaze serves on the board of the Regional Chamber of Northeast Indiana and is an honorary member of the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership.
Dominic Grote has worked his way up through his family‘s fourth-generation company—Grote Industries—over the past 29 years, becoming CEO and president in 2009. Grote Industries is a global manufacturer of vehicle lighting and safety systems. In 2018, it began partnering with Ivy Tech Community College to provide training to women in prison. In 2020, it opened its Next Generation Manufacturing Center to produce LED headlamps. Grote is a member of the Indiana Economic Development Corp. board and chair of the Heavy Duty Manufacturers Association.
Admires most: “My father, Bill Grote. He has been an incredible role model for me my entire life. From working in the business, to the importance of being engaged in your industry, to raising a family, and so much more. He has [led] and is leading an inspiring, balanced life.”
Walk-up song: “One Sweet World,” by the Dave Matthews Band
Jerome Henry is owner and president of Midwest Pipe & Steel, which specializes in steel sales and service, industrial scrap and steel brokerage. He is also president of Paragon Tube Corp. and of Hartzell Realty Corp. He also has an ownership interest in Paragon Steel Trading in Butler, Wayne Metals in Markle, Creative Coatings in Kendallville, SRT Aluminum in Wabash, and Adventure Homes in Garrett. He has been active with Bishop Luers High School, St. Joseph Community Health Foundation and Big Brothers Big Sisters, and he recently retired from the Old National Bank board.
Something surprising: “I‘m more sentimental than most people know.”
Advice to young people: “Get going! You cannot learn to swim from reading a book; you have to get in the water! Always, always honor your commitments.”
Lessons learned: “Don‘t take yourself too seriously.” And, “People will always remember how you made them feel.”
Robert Koch is the fourth-generation leader of Koch Enterprises, a family of manufacturing and distribution companies that has grown from $75 million in revenue when he became president in 1980 to more than $1 billion today. Koch Enterprises, with nearly 2,800 employees worldwide, has interests in industrial paint finishing systems, vehicle components, aluminum recycling and casting, HVAC equipment, and security systems. Koch is a member of the Evansville Business Hall of Fame and has previously served on the boards of Fifth Third Bancorp and Vectren Corp. and as president of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce board.
Hobbies: “golf, music, technology and making family videos”
Admires most: “my father, Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Edison”
Advice for young people: “Find a good mentor and, as time progresses, surround yourself with the best possible people.”
Walk-up song: “William Tell Overture,” by Gioachino Rossini
Cathy Langham launched Langham Logistics in 1998 with two siblings after owning franchises in the trucking industry. She has built the company into a $60 million global transportation and warehousing business with 200 employees and more than a million square feet of distribution facilities, including a cold-storage warehouse she just opened in Whitestown. Langham serves on the boards of Indiana University, Penske Entertainment and the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership, and she‘s president of The Economic Club of Indiana. In 2019, CICP awarded Langham the second annual Andre B. Lacy Vanguard award.
A better Indiana: “It would be fantastic to put a group together of the best minds in the state to create and execute on a strategy to improve the health of and education opportunities for Hoosiers.”
Favorite part of being a leader: “Helping to generate passion in young people about making a difference in their lives and the lives of the people around them.”
Peter Liegl founded Forest River, an RV and camper manufacturer, in 1996 in Elkhart after working in leadership at Coachmen Industries Inc. and then co-founding Cobra Industries, which he and his partners sold. After Liegl left, Cobra filed for bankruptcy and Liegl founded Forest River, which took over some of Cobra‘s former facilities. The company started by manufacturing pop-up tent campers, travel trailers and fifth-wheel models, growing over the years into producing large RVs, pontoon boats and more. The company, which Berkshire Hathaway acquired in 2005, has about 11,000 employees and $3.3 billion in annual revenue. It produces brands that include Dynamax and Coachmen.
Tom Linebarger became CEO and chair of Cummins Inc., the world‘s largest independent manufacturer of engines and related technologies, in 2012 after serving in other executive roles since 1998. He plans to step down as CEO on Aug. 1 but remain chairman. Cummins has 60,000 employees in more than 190 countries. Linebarger is a member of the Harley-Davidson board and serves on the national Business Roundtable, an association of CEOs who work with government leaders on public-policy issues. He is chair of the U.S.-China Business Council and the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership board. He‘s also co-chair of the Global Hydrogen Council and joined the CEO Climate Dialogue Group.
Lessons learned: “The companies that win are the ones with the best leaders. There is no substitute for investing in people to become accountable, agile and resilient leaders.”
Hobbies: “I enjoy cycling, skiing and hiking. The truth is that I love the outdoors and, if I am not balancing my physical exercise with my mental exercise, I get out of balance.”
Walk-up song: “Seven Nation Army,” by The White Stripes
Jason Lippert is the third-generation leader of Lippert (previously known as Lippert Components and LCI Industries), a manufacturer and supplier of components for the RV, marine, bus and trailer industries. He became CEO in 2003, after starting his own travel trailer chassis line six years earlier. Lippert has grown to 14,000 employees and $2.9 billion in annual sales and operates 90 facilities in 17 states and eight countries. Jason Lippert is a member of the Quanex Building Products Corp. board and serves on the Boys & Girls Clubs of Elkhart County board.
