- Steve Korn has been promoted to the newly-created position of president of global Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) Operations
- Lee Kemper has been promoted to the newly-created position of Vice President of Diversified Contract Manufacturing Services (DCMS)
Kimball Electronics, Inc. has announced two new internal promotions that will help the company to accelerate its strategic growth plans. It said that effective from first July 2020, Steve Korn has been promoted to the newly-created position of president of global Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) Operations, and Lee Kemper has been promoted to the newly-created position of vice president of Diversified Contract Manufacturing Services (DCMS).
Donald D. Charron, chairman, and CEO, Kimball Electronics said, “I’m excited about these appointments. Both are proven leaders and are the right people to execute our EMS and DCMS growth plans. Steve has been instrumental in helping us exceed our goal of $1 billion in sales and driving operational excellence; and as General Manager, Lee has done a great job integrating and transforming our Kimball Electronics Indianapolis operations.”
Korn had joined Kimball Electronics in 2004. Recently, he was the vice president of North American Operations and Global Supply Chain. He has over 30 years of EMS experience, holding executive positions with increasing levels of leadership and responsibility in operations management, business development, and engineering management. He will continue to work closely with the Company’s business development team, led by Kathy Thomson, Vice President, Global Business Development and Design Services, to continue to grow business.
Establish strategic inroads
Kemper joined Kimball Electronics in 2018 and was most recently the general manager for the Company’s Kimball Electronics Indianapolis facility. Before this, he was the president of iScribeMD in Toledo, Ohio. He has over 20 years of manufacturing, operations, and supply chain experience. He has a business administration degree from the University of Saint Francis (Indiana) and an MBA from the University of Toledo. In the last two years, he was key to the company’s DCMS efforts to establish strategic inroads by developing innovative plastic injection molding solutions and complex device assembly for medical customers.
The company said that before this, it maintained a regionalised approach to the leadership structure of global EMS manufacturing facilities. Korn served as vice president of North American Operations, Roger Chang (Chang Shang Yu) served as vice president of Asian Operations, and Janusz Kasprzyk served as vice president of European Operations. Both Chang and Kasprzyk have announced plans to retire after many years with the company, effective 30th June 2020.
Single executive leader for all EMS locations
Charron added, “Both Roger and Janusz have been long-standing employees for us and helped grow our business in their respective geographical regions. They have made significant accomplishments throughout their careers, and we will be forever thankful to them for helping us achieve lasting relationships and global success. We wish them good health, happiness, and further success as they enter their new life chapters. They are deserving of the added time they can now spend with their families and pursuing other personal endeavors.”
Korn, in his new role, will serve as the single executive leader for all EMS locations. The current General Managers for EMS operations in Asia, Europe, and North America, will report directly to Korn. Charron said, ” “With Steve as our EMS leader, we expect to optimize and grow our EMS business, which continues to be our core business. There are other things we expect to occur as a result of this change, too. We plan to create more focus and acceleration around our common vision for the smart factory of the future and our industry 4.0 strategy. Bringing our EMS facilities under one leader is an important step in our journey, and it’s the right time to take that step.”
He further said, “These leadership promotions further exemplify how we have grown into being a multifaceted, global Company. What I’m also excited about is how this change will help us cultivate talent to create a deeper pool of future leaders who will ensure that our Company stays successful. This will help put our best organization in place and take our Company to the next level of performance and growth.”
