Karl R
Lead Product Engineer @Steelcase
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WORK HISTORY
Lead Product Engineer @Steelcase
Grand Rapids, MI, US
Leading a lean team of 2 dedicated engineers, acting as program management and technical lead, while coordinating Marketing, Supply Chain, and Project Management partners at <10% capacity to handle resource allocation and risk management across multiple projects in flight- Driving conversion of high-value customer Specials into Standard catalog products with a sub‑6‑month launch target, redesigning Steelcase’s 180+ step PD & L stage‑gate process into a lean set of <70 deliverables through structured process improvement and change management work- Building standardized project tracking tools to communicate program status, scope, risks, and budget for director and working-level audiences, while maintaining 100% budget compliance and proactively flagging risks.
EDUCATION
University of Michigan College of Engineering
B.S. , Mechanical Engineering | Deans Honor List
ABOUT KARL R
I walked on to the University of Michigan football team, following in the footsteps of my father a generation before. No scholarship, no guarantee of playing time, and a Michigan engineering degree that was not going to earn itself. Just the belief that if I gave everything I had, I would earn my spot and build something greater than any individual. I learned the pressure around me was just information. Read the situation, make the call, and review the film after. That mindset has shaped how I show up for the teammates I work alongside ever since.Over the past 14+ years in Product Development, I have earned my footing across high-stakes global programs and built fluency well beyond my degree - spanning driveline architectures, battery systems, consumer electronics, and manufacturing processes across 3 continents. I have learned that the engineers who create the most value are not always the deepest specialists. They are the ones who can align a team around a difficult problem, translate complexity into a clear path forward, and deliver outcomes that matter.I have grown from building customer relationships on the front lines to leading global technical programs and developing the engineers around me. Through all of it, the work I am most proud of has nothing to do with a number on a page. It is the trust built, the hard conversations had early, the teammate who grew into something they did not think was possible. I lead people first, challenge what is comfortable, and leave every team more capable than I found it.The wins I am most proud of were not mine. They belonged to the room.
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