PATH OF A WARRIOR From the Desk of Alan Elliott
HELPING TO SHAPE THE FUTURE Hello, my name is Alan Elliott. I graduated from Indiana Tech with a bachelor’s in Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering in 2003 and an MBA in 2010. I am the university’s alumni board president. Presently, I am a global sourcing director for a garage door hardware company, but I have enjoyed a progressive and winding career path as a result of my education from Indiana Tech. After graduation, I began my career with a furniture company in Indianapolis, in supervision and management roles. In 2006, I was able to put my degree to use and get involved in engineering. I was happy to finally be able to take lessons from the classroom to the factory floor, and soon thereafter, I returned to Tech as a College of Professional Studies student.
Are you passionate about Indiana Tech? Our alumni association and board would love to have you join! Reach out to Matt Brown, director of alumni relations, at mjbrown@indianatech.edu for more information about how you can get involved.
In 2012, I began my current career path in a role I always wanted and had long considered my highest aspiration: plant manager. Since then, I have been allowed to learn and grow in multisite management, contract negotiation and direct sourcing, resulting in sums well over $100 million. The impact my Indiana Tech education and experiences had on my career cannot be overstated. Thanks to my MBA coursework and mentoring from some great connections I still value greatly, a job I had thought was my mountaintop became attainable about a year after I turned 30. I went to Indiana Tech with an inquisitive nature and mechanical aptitude. From there, the university helped me hone my process engineering skills so I could apply a logical, effective problemsolving process to a myriad of areas. Indiana Tech’s learning environment was one I could connect with and grow from, and with a continuous improvement mindset, effort and curiosity, some really cool experiences were made possible for me.
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That curiosity ultimately brought me back to Indiana Tech—first, for an MBA; second, for an adjunct teaching opportunity; and, finally, to give back to the school by working for the alumni board. Speaking from my alumni board role, I would like to encourage all Tech alumni with similar experiences in their career development to get involved with the university in some fashion. As alumni board president, I have the privilege of overseeing the board’s activities and watching how its committees impact both students and alumni. For instance, our student outreach committee—reinvigorated with a new chair and members—continually looks for ways to engage with students. Our alumni outreach committee hosts events and reaches out to alumni to bring them back to campus and see the great things going on at Tech. The thing is, you don’t need to be a full-time board member to be on one of our committees. If you are interested in joining, ask. And, joining a committee isn’t the only way to get involved with and give back to the university. You can: à Come back to campus for one of the many events Tech hosts and have a blast. Then, spread the word to others in your class so they can join in the fun. à Connect with our students—as a mentor or employer—to help them navigate the challenges in front of them and find their way. I hope you consider returning to Indiana Tech to reconnect with those who share your launch point and give something back to a university that gave us so much. Get on campus and see, firsthand, the passion of today’s students as they start their journey. I assure you it will light a fire inside you that will warm the sentimental spirit. I hope to see many old friends and lots of new faces at the next events. I look forward to connecting with you all soon. Go Warriors!
