Embracing Innovation and Risk - The SupplyCore Story
An Inc. 500 Hall of Fame Member, SupplyCore has been a part of Rockford since its inception in 1987. It has experienced significant growth, growing from a small office in the Barber Colman complex to the largest private corporate employer in downtown Rockford and from a small Department of Defense (DoD) supplier to a supply chain integrator that is now one of the largest small business suppliers for the DoD. SupplyCore’s division dedicated to innovation, software, social enterprise is MPOWR®. Committed to its business decisions and philanthropic efforts to the revitalization of our downtown, SupplyCore also includes affiliate businesses, Joseph James Partners and Rocktown Adventures.
Jeff Fahrenwald, Vice President for Strategy Development and Execution, has worked as a consultant and full time for SupplyCore Inc. since 1992. He served as VP of Operations from 1999 through 2002 and is also a partner in one of SupplyCore’s international affiliates.
Before taking his current role at SupplyCore, Jeff was an Assistant Professor of Business and the MBA Director at Rockford University. He taught classes at both the undergraduate level and graduate level related to Strategic Planning and Leadership. Jeff has experience working with and in for-profit and not-for-profit organizations as well as manufacturing, distribution and service organizations. He has held leadership positions in local, regional and national organizations. A past president of both the MBAA International and The North American Management Society (NAMS), he is currently an advisory board member for MBAA International.
He has held leadership board positions at Rockford Local Development Corporation, Montessori Private Academy, Rockford Rotary, The American Red Cross, and Rockford Aquarium, to name a few. Serving as an advisory board member for NICNE for many years, Jeff has recently joined NICNE’s first official board of directors as vice president. He is also active in many additional Rockford area organizations such as Transform Rockford and Alignment Rockford.
He has been recognized for his many contributions to the Rockford community. He was named the 2014 Citizen of the Year by the Rockford Chamber of Commerce as well as one of the 21 People You Should Know in 2011. Jeff has also received several other awards, including Rotary’s Service Above Self Award, a Golden Rule Award from JCPenney, Crusader Clinic’s Spirit of Caring Award and a Community Service Award from the Rockford Park District. He has an MBA from Eastern Illinois University and additional post-graduate coursework from the University of Nebraska.
This will be a most informative program about one of Rockford's best kept secrets. They have also been one of the supporters of downtown Rockford. This will be an opportunity to bring a guest or prospective member. Suzanne Berger will introduce our presenter and act as Rotary Host.