Rich McLaughlin has been developing leaders and engaging teachers for more than 25 years. He brings an experiential approach to his work with client teams. He spent time learning about instructional design and change management at Accenture, helped Square D Company develop and implement their TQM programs and processes and developed the leadership curriculum and internal consulting practice at Baxter Healthcare during his time as an internal OD practitioner. Rich received his M.A. in Training and Development for Business from Ohio State University and has been consulting faculty for the University of Notre Dame’s College of Business since 2000. He is author of “Rules of Engagement: A Story About How Leaders Can More Effectively Engage Employees.” Additionally, he co-authored “Tapping Team Intelligence: Exercises that connect team members, engage their creativity and foster collaboration.”

Bob Kramer is currently serving as president of Capital Precast LLC, a San Marcos, Texas, precast manufacturing company backed by Texas Next, a Texas-based private equity firm. Bob is an accomplished executive with a proven track record for building and leading high-performance teams to deliver growth and performance. He has more than 30 years of experience managing companies in the precast industry. Bob is a certified Merger and Acquisition advisor and has been involved in both the sell side and buy side transactions in the precast industry. He spent nearly 25 years as an executive with Oldcastle Infrastructure and was involved in national initiatives including strategy development, acquisitions, new product development and operational and commercial excellence. After leaving Oldcastle, Bob went on to provide consulting services for some of the largest privately held companies throughout the United States.

Ken Simonson has been Chief Economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, the leading construction trade association, since 2001. He provides insight into the economy and what it implies for construction and related industries through frequent media interviews, presentations, and the Data DIGest, his weekly one-page e-newsletter that goes to more than 20,000 subscribers. Ken has more than 40 years of experience analyzing, advocating and communicating about economic and tax issues. He currently serves as an advisor to the Census Bureau’s construction data re-engineering initiative. He is a Fellow and past president of the National Association for Business Economics, and he is co-director of the Tax Economists Forum, a professional meeting group he co-founded in 1982. Ken has a B.A. in economics from the University of Chicago and an M.A. in economics from Northwestern University.

Rich McLaughlin has been developing leaders and engaging teachers for more than 25 years. He brings an experiential approach to his work with client teams. He spent time learning about instructional design and change management at Accenture, helped Square D Company develop and implement their TQM programs and processes and developed the leadership curriculum and internal consulting practice at Baxter Healthcare during his time as an internal OD practitioner. Rich received his M.A. in Training and Development for Business from Ohio State University and has been consulting faculty for the University of Notre Dame’s College of Business since 2000. He is author of “Rules of Engagement: A Story About How Leaders Can More Effectively Engage Employees.” Additionally, he co-authored “Tapping Team Intelligence: Exercises that connect team members, engage their creativity and foster collaboration.”

Claude Goguen is NPCA’s director of outreach and technical education. He has decades of experience in the precast concrete and construction industry. He holds a degree in civil engineering and is a licensed P.E. Prior to his role with NPCA, Claude was an operations manager at a precast concrete manufacturing plant. He also worked as a field superintendent, project manager and project engineer on numerous large residential and commercial projects.