From selling cereal out of a van to leading a Fortune 500 company and serving in a presidential Cabinet, Carlos Gutierrez has built a career defined by determination, adaptability and an unconventional path to leadership.
On Thursday, Oct. 15, Gutierrez will return to Southwest Michigan for a series of on-stage conversations with some of the region’s best-known business and civic leaders. Sharing the program with the former U.S. commerce secretary will be longtime business leader Bill Parfet, former Kellogg executive George Franklin, Western Michigan University President Russ Kavalhuna and Southwest Michigan First CEO Jennifer Owens.
The event, “From C-Suite to the Cabinet: A Conversation with The Honorable Carlos Gutierrez,” will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Radisson Plaza Hotel in downtown Kalamazoo as part of WMU’s We Talk speaker series. Seating is limited and registration is required. Individual tickets are $75 and can be purchased online here.
Gutierrez’s story begins far from the executive suite. Born in Havana, Cuba, he came to the United States with his family in 1960 and later lived in Mexico. He joined Kellogg Co. in 1975 as a sales representative and rose through the company to become president and CEO in 1999, becoming the youngest chief executive in the company’s nearly 100-year history. He later served as the 35th U.S. secretary of commerce under President George W. Bush from 2005 to 2009.
His return to the region comes just days after the Oct. 6 release of his memoir, “Sheer Will: Learning to Lead When There Is No Path.” The book recounts his unconventional journey and the leadership lessons he drew from navigating opportunities, setbacks and moments when no obvious path forward existed.
“Carlos Gutierrez’s journey is a great American story, but it is also a Southwest Michigan story,” said Jeff Breneman, senior vice president for external relations at WMU.
“He started at Kellogg selling cereal and ultimately rose to lead the company before serving his country at the highest levels of government. His story gives students, business leaders and others across our community an opportunity to learn what leadership looks like when there isn’t an obvious path forward.”
The luncheon will move through several conversations that connect Gutierrez’s Southwest Michigan roots with his later career in business and public service.
Kavalhuna and Owens will discuss the regional economy, the partnership between WMU and Southwest Michigan First and the role both organizations play in supporting regional growth and talent development.
Gutierrez will then sit down with Franklin, a former Kellogg colleague, for a conversation about their years at the Battle Creek-based company, including challenging leadership moments and lessons Gutierrez carried with him as his career evolved.
The featured conversation will pair Gutierrez with Parfet, chairman and CEO of Northwood Group and former vice chairman and president of The Upjohn Co. Together, they will explore Gutierrez’s public service, consequential decision-making and themes from Sheer Will.
“This is an opportunity for our business community, students, faculty, staff and organizational leaders to be part of the same conversation and learn from someone whose career has spanned Southwest Michigan, corporate leadership and public service,” Breneman said.
“We hope people leave not only inspired by Carlos’ story, but thinking differently about the paths leaders can take and the opportunities that can emerge from obstacles.”