Detroit, MI native Robert E. Rossiter served Lear Corporation forfour decades and was an exceptional leader and a driving force in building Lear Corporation into a world-class global company. Bob held positions of increasing responsibility until
he was ultimately promoted to Chief Executive Officer, a position he held for the last 11 years of his career at Lear.
Bob fostered a culture of industry leading customer service, continuous improvement, the highest level of integrity and support of the communities where Lear does business. These core values are the foundation of Lear’s rich culture that
continue to guide Lear today.
Under his leadership, Lear grew from a small U.S. based supplier to a multibillion dollar leading global supplier of automotive seating and electrical distribution systems. In addition to his many career accomplishments, Bob’s contributions to the community included serving on numerous charitable boards, support of hundreds of charitable causes and pledges of millions in financial support to worthy causesworldwide.
Burt Jordan is Ford’s Vice President, Global Vehicle & Indirect Purchasing and Supply Chain Sustainability, effective October 1, 2017. He is responsible for global body exterior, body interior, chassis and electrical systems procurement, along with all global indirect purchasing and supplier diversity development. In this role he is responsible for approximately $90 Billion. Jordan reports to Hau Thai-Tang, Ford Executive Vice President, Product Development and Purchasing.
Prior to this role, Jordan was elected a corporate officer and named vice president, Global Vehicle and Powertrain Purchasing and Supplier Diversity, effective August. 1, 2013. Jordan was responsible for all commodity-related purchasing and supplier sourcing around the world.
Early on, Jordan served as Executive Director, Global Vehicle and Powertrain Purchasing, a position he held from July 1, 2010. His group was responsible for procurement of production and powertrain parts and commodities for Ford Motor Company operations worldwide. Jordan also oversaw Supplier Diversity Development and Global Supply Risk Management.
On April 1, 2008, Jordan was promoted to Executive Director, Global Powertrain Purchasing, after serving as Director of Powertrain and Driveline Purchasing for the Americas beginning in January 2006.
Jordan spent approximately six years working with Ford and Mazda Purchasing organizations in Asia. On October 1, 2004, he was named Director, Purchasing, Ford Asia Pacific and Africa, where he managed overall purchasing activities for operations in Australia, India, South Africa, the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and
Vietnam. Prior to that he was the Deputy General Manager of the Purchasing Division for Mazda in April 2002. He served as the Assistant General Manager from September 1, 2001. He joined Ford in 1999.
Prior to joining Ford in 1999, he spent 10 years working in the Automotive Industry with stints at General Motors, Toyota and United Technologies serving in various positions. Jordan earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Alma College in Alma, Michigan. He was also appointed to the United States Air Force Academy in 1985 by the Honorable Robert Carr of the 8th District of Michigan.
African Americans On Wheels Magazine recognized Jordan as one of the “70 Most Influential African American Men in the Automotive Industry.” In 2011, Jordan was recognized in the book, “Driven. A Tribute to AfricanAmerican Achievement in the Automotive Industry.” In 2010 and 2011, Jordan’s outstanding commitment to
diversity was recognized by Automotive News, which named him an “All-Star for Minority Business.” He was also recognized by rainbow Push as an “Emerging Leader” that same year. The Michigan Minority Supplier Development Council, awarded Jordan the “President’s Award” in 2011 and in 2018. He was also named
“Executive of the Year” by the Michigan Minority Supplier Development Council in 2018.
Jordan, born in March 1967, is on the board of directors for Focus Hope, The Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern Michigan and the Michigan-National Multiple Sclerosis Society. He also serves as a trustee for Alma College.
A native of Argentina, Mazzorin spent 13 years at General Motors Corp. before joining Ford in 1972 and retiring in 2002 after 30 years with the company.
His first job at Ford was as a purchasing procurement analyst. He climbed the ranks in a series of purchasing assignments, rising to vice president of global purchasing, a responsibility he retained when he later was named group vice president for South American Operations and subsequently Asia Pacific Operations in November 2001.
Mazzorin most recently spent eight years at Ontario, Canada- based Magna International. From 2007 to 2010, Mazzorin served as the President and Chief Operating Officer of Magna Electronics, Inc. Prior to that, beginning in 2002, he served as the President and Chief Operating Officer of Magna Mirrors.
Mazzorin graduated from General Motors Institute of Technology (today Kettering University) after completing a two-year supply chain studies program. He also completed Business Administration studies in the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Harold R. Kutner worked at General Motors as head of procurement departments in many GM locations. His last position was Group Vice President of Worldwide Purchasing and Production Control. In this position, Harold oversaw the procurement of goods and services over billions of dollars with a passion for helping minority and women businesses enter and succeed in supplying goods and services to General Motors. He also served many years as president and vice chairman of the Michigan Minority Supplier council and the National Minority Supplier Council. People special to him for supporting his objectives were J David Allen, mayor Dennis Archer, Ron Hall past leader of MMSDC, Harriet Michel president of NMSDC, John Barth a great GM supplier, Bill Packard, and many others who furthered his vision.
Special thanks to Judy Kutner who stayed at Harold’s side during many days and nights away from home. Harold now resides in Jupiter Fl with many happy memories.
J. David Allen retired from General Motors where he was the Executive Director for Africa and the Middle East and is renowned for his work with minority suppliers through his position as Director of GM’s Supplier Diversity Group and as Vice President of GM’s Motor Enterprise Inc.
While at GM Mr. Allen championed joint ventures and strategic alliances between minority suppliers and GM’s Tier 1 suppliers. GM increased their spend with minority suppliers in 1999 from $2.2 Billion to an unprecedented $4.0 Billion in 2001. In the same year GM Tier 1 suppliers procured an additional $1.1 Billion from minority suppliers. He credits GM, Harold Kutner, Vice President, and his Purchasing Group as well as the Supplier Diversity Staff, for helping support, implement and achieve these record setting minority purchasing goals.
Allen retired in 2002 and established Populus Group, a Human Resources Joint Venture with Allegis Group. He retired from Populus Group and is currently active in international trade consulting.
Mr. Joseph was the Senior Executive for Diversity Supplier Development at Chrysler LLC before retirement. His duties included identifying qualified minority suppliers, developing existing minority suppliers, verifying credentials, and expanding minority suppliers through first tier opportunities. He encouraged minority sub-contracting with first-tier suppliers, monitoring progress toward annual minority supplier participation goals, providing minority supplier access to the Chrysler’s Global Sourcing community, monitoring second tier participation and interfacing with the community.
Through his work, Jethro Joseph enabled hundreds of minority entrepreneurs to not only successfully enter the business world but to thrive in it. His work at FCA serves as a standard bearer all other supplier development programs soon followed.
Jethro Joseph is a familiar face in the industry as well as in local and national Supplier Diversity circles. Mr. Joseph served as a member of the Board of Directors of; National Minority Supplier Development Council, Diversity Information Resources, Michigan Minority Supplier Development Council (MMSDC), The Business Consortium Fund (BCF), Michigan Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (MHCC), Billion Dollar Roundtable (BDR), Chrysler’s African American Network (CAAN). Mr. Joseph currently serves as a member of the board of the Native American Business Alliance (NABA), Morris Brown College National Alumni Association, Health Alliance Plan and Hartford Memorial Baptist Church. He is a member of the Michigan Association of CPAs and Detroit Inter-Alumni Council – United Negro College Fund.
Among the many honors Mr. Joseph has received are the Minority Business Enterprise Coordinator of the year by the National Minority Supplier Development Council on two occasions during his tenure in this position; America’s Top Diversity Advocates by Diversitybusiness.com, Men Impacting Supplier Diversity, Hispanic Advocate Award, Tuck School of Business Corporate Supplier Diversity Advocate;
Influential Minorities in Business; Diversity Supplier Mentor Award; President’s Recognition Award by the Michigan Minority Business Development Council; Business Consortium Fund Star Recognition and United Negro College Fund Man of the Year for Morris Brown College. The National Black Automotive Suppliers recognized Mr. Joseph as Supplier Diversity Legend also the Michigan Chronicle recognized Mr. Joseph as one of the Men of Excellence for the Detroit community.
For his work as a career advocate for minority supplier development, and the standard that he helped set for corporations here in Michigan. The Michigan Minority Supplier Development Council is proud to induct Jethro Joseph into the Michigan Minority Business Hall of Fame.
John M. Barth’s career at Johnson Controls began when he joined the corporation as an industrial engineer in 1969. Over the next 38 years, he held several positions until 2002, when started to serve as Chief Executive Officer. After retirement, Mr. Barth continued to serve as Chairman of the Board of Directors.
Throughout his professional career, John Barth has demonstrated an exemplary commitment to supplier diversity. Within the Diversity Business Development model at Johnson Controls, John Barth was devoted to utilizing diverse suppliers, including companies that are owned by minorities and women in the United States, and internationally, firms that are historically underutilized in their local country.
John Barth also offered his extensive business and leadership experience as a member of several boards, including Adient, as well as Vice Chairman of the MMBDC Board of Directors, and Chairman of NMSDC. Among his many accolades, John has been named Best CEO, and received awards from Milwaukee NAACP, Milwaukee Urban League, and NMSDC.
Renaldo (Ray) Jensen retired in late 2005 as Director of Ford Supplier Diversity Development (SDD) after 27 years with the corporation. Since 1987, he led the company’s supplier diversity program, which in 2004 purchased $3.7 billion in goods and services from 309 minority suppliers. Jensen grew supplier diversity at Ford to make it the program other Fortune 500 company benchmark.
Ray, who holds a PhD in Engineering, was the first African American faculty member at the Air Force Institute of Technology. In 1978, he was recruited by Ford Motor Company to head up their Aerodynamics Design Center. Ultimately, Jensen accepted the position as Director of Supplier Diversity at Ford, which made him responsible for providing support and resources to minority suppliers.
Jensen has won every award given to individuals by the Minority Supplier Development Council. Jensen wants his legacy to be that he showed people that they can be effective while being creditable and honest.
Thomas Sidlik’s almost fifty-year career in the automotive industry began at Ford Motor Company and continued at Chrysler at the start of Lee Iacocca’s leadership there. He held various leadership positions in Finance, Engineering, Sales & Marketing, Quality, Procurement & Supply and became a Member of the Management Board of DaimlerChrysler AG.
While he was head of Procurement & Supply, DaimlerChrysler was named Corporation of the Year numerous times by MMSDC as well as NMSDC for its efforts to support and grow minority owned businesses. Mr. Sidlik took a leadership role in both organizations as Chairman of the Michigan Council and Vice-Chairman of the NMSDC, as well as Chairman of National’s Executive Committee.
In his retirement, he has served on many boards including Delphi, Cooper-Standard, the Board Regents of Eastern Michigan University, the Detroit Institute of Arts, and the University of Chicago Booth School of Business Council.
He holds degrees from New York University and The University of Chicago.
In August 2013, Tony retired as group vice president of purchasing at Ford Motor Co., where he was instrumental in the company’s turnaround on the brink of bankruptcy. In this position,Tony managed approximately $90 billion of production and non-production goods and services for operations worldwide. Tony is best known for his work during the auto crisis, when Ford mortgaged nearly everything, including the Blue Oval, to avoid bankruptcy. He launched a secret initiative called Project Quark, through which Ford worked with Toyota Motor Corp. to prop up the struggling supply base.
Tony also reorganized Ford’s supplier structure, consolidating the supply base into about a third the size from when he inherited it. He put a strong emphasis on positive supplier relations, which had often been adversarial. At the time of his retirement, Ford president and CEO Alan Mulally said, “Tony Brown is a world-class business leader who has helped to transform Ford’s relationships with our global supplier partners,” and, “Tony’s leadership and dedication to working together have helped Ford and our supplier partners emerge from the recent global transformation of the auto industry well-positioned for future growth.”
Prior to joining Ford in 1999, Tony held a variety of senior supply chain and purchasing leadership positions, including vice president of supply chain management for United Technologies Corp. and executive director of purchasing and transportation for QMS, Inc., a makerand provider of networked enterprise printing solutions.
Tony serves on the boards of 3M, ConAgra Foods and Tower International.
He has been honored by Rainbow/PUSH with the “Keep Hope Alive” award, and by the National Action Network as a recipient of the “Keeper of the Dream” award.