Bob Wilson

Born on a U.S. Air Force base in Nebraska, raised in Biloxi, Mississippi, and educated in Okinawa, Japan, Bob Wilson grew up as a multicultural kid interested in science and technology. After graduating from Michigan Technological University with a chemical engineering degree, he joined Shell Chemical Company as a technical sales representative.

After earning an MBA and a master’s in Asian studies, Wilson joined Arthur D. Little as a global management consultant. His work included operational diagnostics and improvements, segmentation, portfolio management, and valuation for mergers and acquisitions.

Wilson participated in acquisitions in a later role at W. R. Grace. That work took him to China, Thailand, Japan, Brazil, Venezuela, Mexico, Germany, Spain, and Russia, and he helped the company acquire three businesses globally.

Wilson left to serve as global marketing director of the packaging technologies division, which reinforced the importance of customer focus. It was the really the same thing he’d always done: study applications and figure out how his business could add more value.

That’s what he does today as vice president of marketing at Swagelok, a $1.8 billion, privately held company headquartered in Solon, Ohio. Wilson leads the sales and marketing teams in finding new ways to provide value to customers.

Reporting to Wilson are leaders responsible for product and market management, global key account management, pricing, customer and business analytics, field engineering, service offerings and training development, strategy and acquisitions, new market development, and two P&L businesses with ~$100 million in sales.

Specialties: P&L Management, Strategy Development and Execution, Communications, Business Development, Mergers and Acquisitions, Deal Negotiations, Industrial Marketing, Product Development Processes, Product Promotion, Lean and Six Sigma, Restructuring and Realignment, Sales Force Management and Go-to-Market Strategies, Pricing, CRM, and Doing Business in Asia.