Curt G Joa Inc, a global, custom-engineering design and machine-building company, has announced Richard 'Rick' Michaletz as the new company president.
Prior to joining the company, Michaletz spent over 20 years with the Bemis Company in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, US, where he held a variety of leadership positions - most recently as the senior vice president, Commercial, for Bemis North America. Before that, Michaletz served as president of Bemis Europe while living in Brussels, Belgium, for over three years.
Michaletz, who is native to Wisconsin, earned his Industrial Engineering degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his master’s in Business Administration from the University of Rochester.
“My father was a skilled tradesman from Germany who built his family business in the Sheboygan Falls area on solid customer loyalty, and I knew Curt G Joa Inc had the same focus on customers,” says Michaletz. “However, I was attracted to the leadership role by the well-founded strategy and focus on growth for customers and employees.”
This announcement is part of the company’s intended succession plan for the president role. The current president, Gene Kiela II, will remain active in the business to ensure a smooth transition in leadership. Michaletz will start on 4 September.
“Rick joins our company with the full support of the board of directors, leadership team and Joa family. He has the same focus on customer success as started by my grandfather, Curt Joa, who founded this company 86 years ago and thus initiated that culture in our company,” says Kiela.
“Throughout the search process for my successor, we knew we had the time and family support to get it right. We are delighted that Rick is joining Curt G Joa Inc, and we are confident he will lead the company’s success and build upon the strong relationships with our customers, employees, suppliers and family,” he adds.
