March 15, 2005 Allen R. Wilkie '72, speaker VP and Operations Controller, Remy International "After graduation Mr. Wilkie got a job right away working at Dravo Corporation. He then went on to Consolidation Coal and realized that if he wanted to move up in his work he would have to go on and get his masters. He then received his MBA from Duquesne University. Mr. Wilkie then worked at General Tire and Ameron International. In 1996, he accepted a position at Remy International and has been there ever since. He has had 7 different positions in 16 years all of which were some kind of promotions. Through these roles he found himself becoming a problem fixer, which is a characteristic that he has carried with him." - Laura Simonetti, senior business administration major "I liked his comparison of a bleeding emergency room patient with cancer, to a company in trouble. The first thing you have to do is stop the bleeding and worry about the cancer later. In a company, you have to know how to solve problems and which ones to focus on first. If you ignore something that is causing the most damage right now and try to solve other more long-term problems, you won't be helping the company at all." - Melissa Wade, junior accounting & business administration major "Allen gave four steps for a successful career: find a mentor or promoter, take measured risks, expand circles of influence and set career goals." - Eric Hauser, senior accounting & business administration major "Lessons Learned: 1)Learn from others; the people around you know what they are doing since they are working there too and they might be able to teach you something. 2)Issues do matter; know issues the company is dealing with and also issues around the world so you can be educated about what is going on. 3)Become a problem fixer; if you can fix problems in a company the chances are you are going to get promoted and continue to advance in your career. - Adam Guthrie, junior business administration and mortuary science major "During dinner Mr. Wilkie told me of the need for competent Chinese speaking business persons in this industry as a lot of companies are trying to move their factories to China where the wage is cheaper. As a student who is majoring in Chinese and business and seeking a business opportunity in both China and the USA, his advice opened another world for me." - Ji Young Kim, senior English major