Alumni Profile: Karl Urban '92

Education prior to MMM:
The first Masters in Manufacturing Management (MMM) degrees were awarded to the class of ’92, and Karl Urban was one of those leading graduates.

Prior to coming to MMM, Karl had earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering at the University of New Hampshire.

Employment prior to MMM:
After earning his Mechanical Engineering degree, he was hired by General Electric (G.E.) where he was selected for their Manufacturing Management Program (MMP). This program consisted of four, six-month engineering assignments. His assignments were split between the aerospace group and the appliance division. After completing the MMP rotation, G.E. promoted him to the position of Quality Engineer. His management experience at G.E. inspired him to earn his MMM degree. “The MMM degree fit perfectly with what I was looking to do next. I wanted to continue to build on my engineering skills while adding finance and marketing training.”

Positions after MMM:
After leaving MMM, Karl put his degree-related skills to work as a supply chain consultant, rising to the position of Principal and working with numerous Fortune 200 companies.

After a 7-year successful career, Karl left consulting to pursue his entrepreneurial interests, purchasing a small manufacturing company in 2000. His company, APM, uses a combination of manual and automated processes to manufacture a variety of musical instrument parts and accessories. Karl has found his MMM skills to be invaluable at APM, which was an “old world” company lacking in any significant manufacturing, inventory or accounting systems. “On any given day I wear many different hats (too many at times). I find that I regularly call on the skills that I learned through Northwestern’s MMM program.”

In his free time, Karl is an avid collector of vintage gramophones and regularly competes in triathlons and marathons.

Why I chose MMM:
Karl was impressed with the program’s focus on manufacturing, an applied and tangible skill set with which he had developed while working for G.E.

While at MMM, Karl had the good fortune to participate in an independent, international consulting project, working with a textile company in the Czech Republic. “With this consulting project, I was able to tie in my engineering back ground and new marketing skills. The textile company had been working under the Soviet era 5 year production plan and needed direction on how to produce and sell its products to a world market-place.” This consulting project helped pave the way for Karl’s next career choice.

Contact: Ksu312@aol.com

Last updated on October 25, 2004 9:08 AM

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