Steven Zirkel

About Steven Zirkel

Achieving sustainable growth of businesses and people will continue to be my focus. Throughout my career, I have led Board of Directors, businesses, organizations, and people to reach new heights by focusing on developing and implementing a vision, strategies, talent management processes, ensuring solid financial acumen, decisions making and execution plans. My diverse business knowledge and geographical experiences brings value to the companies I advise and the Boards I serve. I have conducted business in more than 30 countries, traveled to over 70 countries, lived in London, England and Tokyo, Japan with experiences in several B2B & B2C industries and markets. Companies and executives benefit from the experiences, learnings and knowledge of other executives, which led me to create Blue Everest LLC. At Blue Everest, we build upon decades of executive experiences in strategy formation, working in diverse markets and businesses and then work with our clients to take their business to new heights. The experiences I have acquired over the years are based upon being curious, always learning and recognizing “tomorrow hasn’t happen yet so it can be whatever we want it to be”. Specifically, international business, Board governance, P&L leadership, strategic thinking, history of creating growth, commercial & operational excellence, M&A, innovation, supply chain & operational excellence and the ability to manage and communicate in diverse environments are my core skills. In addition to leading the Blue Everest business, I am a Board of Director member for numerous companies, experienced public speaker and writing my first book. I have been honored to serve as chairman for governance, finance, executive, strategy, and IT committees. I have been fortunate to chair or participate in key industry conferences/symposia in North America, Europe and Asia.

Experience

1. Board of Directors - Independent Board Director - Chair Governance, Audit & Finance Committees

   The Plastek Group

   Jan 2020 — Present · Erie, PA, US

   Private Company Board of the Year for 2022. The Plastek Group is a world class manufacturer of plastics packaging for the Personal Care, Home Care, Food & Beverage, Cosmetics, and Pharmaceutical Packaging Industries. They specialize in Industrial Design, Product and Package Development, Mold Design and Build, Injection, Injection Blow, and Injection Stretch Blow Molding as well as value added Assembly and Decorating.

Education

• UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School

  Executive Leadership, Strategy, & Segmentation

• Bowling Green State University

  Bachelor of Science

• Saint Joseph's University - Erivan K. Haub School of Business

  MBA Program

Skills

• Competitive Analysis
• Contract Negotiation
• Selling
• Product Launch
• Manufacturing
• Product Marketing
• Strategic Thinking
• Market Planning
• Project Planning
• Leadership
• P&L Management
• Business Development
• Management
• Team Building
• Business Intelligence
• Forecasting
• Negotiation
• Marketing Management
• Market Analysis
• Market Research
• International Business
• Product Development
• Integrated Marketing
• Business Planning
• Product Management
• Sales Operations
• Pricing Strategy
• Marketing
• B2b
• Business Strategy
• Business-to-Business (B2b)
• Pricing
• Sales
• Strategic Planning
• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Sales Management
• Market Development
• Budgets
• Supply Chain Management
• Account Management