Mike Hoekstra

Under the umbrella of Galaxy Group, I served as CEO for Galaxy Technologies (aerospace, space, defense, and plastics markets) as well as two acquired companies: Astra Manufacturing (oil & gas, aerospace, industrial, construction, agricultural, recreational, and medical markets), and DPMS (aerospace and medical markets). Our customers included Boeing, Spirit Aerospace, Northrup-Grumman, and ATK. In addition to managing all aspects of the company's manufacturing function, I also negotiated with banks to increase our working capital and ensured continuation of the company's exceptional safety record. Achievements included: Reducing costs and improving profits by establishing data-driven costing systems. As part of this initiative, we also sought feedback from companies that didn't select our bid. Enhancing productivity by more accurately estimating personnel costs utilizing our ERP system. In addition, we provided transparency to the shop floor workers so they could see the time allocated for each project. Reducing the cost of imported tools by as much as 50% by establishing relationships with two suppliers in China. Transforming the culture. I facilitated a shift from a fear-based culture to a teamwork-focused culture by implementing regular meetings, opening the lines of communication, and eliminating unproductive staff at all levels of the organization.

The scope of my leadership for the manufacturing and materials group included quality, shipping, purchasing, manufacturing engineering, maintenance, master scheduling, and safety. Achievements included: Improving customer on-time delivery. To achieve this, we increased manufacturing throughput and revamped the entire scheduling system. Reducing direct employee turnover by modernizing the hiring practices.

Bay Swiss is an aerospace components manufacturer. I provided leadership for operations, human resources, supply chain, warehousing, sales and marketing, and customer relations. Achievements included: Reducing rejections by more than 50% as a result of strengthening controls, implementing AS9102 procedures, and improving teamwork. Retaining all customers when we lost a key manager. To achieve this, I rallied the team to maintain an exceptionally high level of customer service and made sure we adhered to established production schedules. Passing three quality audits after rewriting the company's entire quality manual to address AS9102 Rev. C.

Chase Industries is the oldest and largest manufacturer of traffic and specialty doors in the world. I established the logistics and scheduling systems in China to make sure products were shipped according to schedule; I also opened factories and began selling in China while still leading the procurement functions for the entire company. In addition, I negotiated union contracts. Achievements included: Growing sales by $2M annually by forming a sales team in China and establishing seven Asian distributors that focused on international sales growth. Slashing customer complaints by more than half by assembling a quality team that conducted root-cause analyses of issues surrounding product quality. Reducing manufacturing costs in Asia by streamlining production expenses, improving efficiency, and conducting extensive training.

In my first role with Chase Industries, I was focused on materials procurement, OEM partnerships, operations, and HR for two manufacturing divisions and Asian component sourcing. Achievements included: Reversing an underperforming division to establish record profitability and position the division as a leader in product development and customer response. Reducing material Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) by more than $2M in the first year and more than $4M in successive years by establishing China purchasing and quality control functions and developing flexible logistics and scheduling systems. Slashing delivery lead time almost 98% by developing a quick-ship program for major retailers including Walmart, Target, and Albertson's. Cutting delivery lead times in half, slashing labor costs by more than 35%, and reducing turnover to less than 1% in just 36 months - all while maintaining high product quality and employee engagement. Building a production facility in Shenzhen, China to sell throughout local markets, which eliminated high import costs into China and facilitated the production of three key lines in Asia.