Mary Bell has advanced through a number of marketing and leadership positions for Caterpillar Inc. since she joined the company in 1981. Thanks to her perseverance, enterprise, and earned trust, Bell now holds the position of vice president of Caterpillar and chairman and president of Caterpillar Logistics Services, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc. Most recently, before being appointed to her current role, Bell managed the worldwide network of Caterpillar parts distribution facilities. She also served as manager of the Dealer Capability Department in Cat’s Product Support Division. Bell says she’s achieved her standing at Caterpillar through being “incessantly curious,” passionate about Caterpillar’s products, teamwork, and of course, through much hard work on her own part.

Even with her demanding position, Bell manages to dedicate a portion of her time to the National Board of Directors for SkillsUSA, a national organization which helps more than 250,000 high school and college students and professional members become high-performance workers in technical, skilled, service, and health occupations. She’s also currently a member of the Board of Commissioners for the Greater Peoria Airport Authority.

She holds a B.S. in Marketing from the Univeristy of Iowa and is a graduate of the University of Michigan’s Advanced Executive Program. She and her husband, David, have a daughter in college and a son at Notre Dame High School.

Tell about your background, schools attended, family, etc.

I grew up in Decorah, Iowa—a town of about 8,000 people located way up in the northeast corner of the state. My mother was a full-time homemaker and my dad, along with his two brothers, owned and operated a large highway construction company. Dad and his brothers were loyal Cat customers, so I grew up around Cat products and Cat dealer representatives. One of my two brothers and my cousin operate a smaller version of the company today.
Decorah was a great place to grow up. It’s beautiful, with rolling hills, woods, and a river running through the city. Outdoor activities were popular in both summer and winter. It even had a little ski run where we skied every minute we could during the winter.

Looking back, I was lucky to grow up in a place where I had exposure to a wide variety of opportunities, including art, music, and science brought to the community by Luther College. My interest in art, music, golf, and politics all started in those early years. When I was a high school senior I was selected to be a Senate Page in the Iowa Legislature. Seeing firsthand how the political process really works was interesting and also provided some basic management and interpersonal insights that have been very useful to me over the years.

I graduated from the University of Iowa in 1981 with a business degree and was thrilled to be hired by Caterpillar. I wanted very much to work in the construction industry, but only for the leader—and that was Cat.

My husband David and I have been married 21 years. We live in Peoria with our daughter Katherine, who will be a freshman at USC in the fall, our son Jay, who’s 15 and will be a sophomore at Notre Dame, and Claire, our beloved border-collie mix.

Tell about your career path leading to vice president of Caterpillar and chairman & president of Caterpillar Logistics Services, Inc.

I was hired in 1981 as a Parts & Service Sales marketing trainee and in 1982 became the parts and service sales rep (PSSR) covering Florida and Georgia. In 1984, I left Caterpillar to become the general parts manager at Yancey Brothers, the Cat dealer in Atlanta. I was anxious to get some hands-on management experience at that time in my career, and joining Yancey seemed to be a good way to get it. It was. I learned a lot about people, leadership, and teamwork, about how a Cat dealership works, and about the challenges and rewards of dealing directly with Cat end users. Those lessons have stayed with me ever since. I came back to Cat at the end of 1988, into the Remanufactured Products Group. I spent most of the next seven years in this group, in various capacities. Cat Reman was a great place to gain exposure to a wide range of functional areas—including marketing, manufacturing, engineering, purchasing, and accounting. In 1998, I became the manager of the Machine Marketing Department in what is now known as the Latin American Commercial Division. This assignment gave me experience in a new area—prime product vs. parts marketing—and provided much-needed exposure to doing business outside the U.S. After two years, I moved on to become the Service Support Department manager, responsible for developing the technical information, tools, and service processes for the worldwide dealers. During this time, I had the privilege of serving on the company’s Strategic Planning Committee, led by then-CEO Glen Barton. Working with leaders from across the company to develop our strategy was a phenomenal learning experience. From Service Support, I moved to the Logistics Division to manage Cat Distribution Services, with responsibility for managing Cat’s global service parts network. Up until that point, most of my experience had been in marketing, so this was a great chance to gain operations experience. I had no idea at the time how useful that experience would prove to be in my next position—as a vice president of Caterpillar with responsibility for the Logistics Division.

Cat Logistics currently serves over 65 clients in the automotive, industrial, aerospace and defense, high tech, and consumer durables sectors. We provide integrated logistics solutions tailored to the unique needs of each of our clients. Cat Logistics differentiates itself from other logistics companies in several areas. First, many logistics companies specialize in only one facet of supply chain management—systems, warehousing, transportation, and so on. We’ve been able to leverage existing capabilities and develop new competencies in many different areas to provide one of the industry’s most comprehensive service offerings. Second, Cat Logistics uses a collaborative approach to establishing relationships with clients. At the onset of each relationship we examine the unique aspects of the client’s supply chain, and what the client hopes to gain by outsourcing its logistics function. Some companies want to enhance customer service, some are seeking financial benefits, and some are seeking both. By working with our clients to understand and support their unique needs and goals, we develop strong relationships with our clients that span many years. The average contract length in our industry is two to three years. Cat Logistics contracts average 7 to 10 years, and our clients often ask us to expand the scope of services we provide for them during the course of their contracts.

Caterpillar recently announced the opening of a Shanghai parts distribution facility. Will you oversee that facility? What are the challenges to global companies when establishing manufacturing and distribution operations in another country?

The China Parts Distribution Center is the newest addition to Caterpillar’s worldwide parts distribution network and will play an important role in supporting Caterpillar’s goal of being a market leader in China. Market leadership will require logistics support to ensure superior parts availability for Cat customers, efficient and cost-effective manufacturing logistics support for our manufacturing facilities in China, and logistics support for imported, domestically manufactured and consumed, and exported products. Providing this broad array of services for our Caterpillar client positions us well to provide similar support for external clients. Today, many multinational companies want to enter the Chinese market but lack the experience or the resources to successfully make the move. China is a challenging market, with geographic, cultural, legal, and other complexities. Leveraging the investment and experience of a company like Cat Logistics provides the opportunity for companies to achieve rapid market entry while minimizing risk. Cat Logistics also hopes to support Chinese companies wanting to improve their domestic and export supply chain operations.

Has Cat Logistics changed focus through the years?

Cat Logistics has evolved while remaining true to our core competency. In the early years, the largest portion of the business by far was supporting the Cat parts distribution operation. External clients, primarily in the automotive and industrial sectors at first, were added steadily. The range of services grew to include more comprehensive transportation and manufacturing logistics services, and an array of integrated systems. We’ve grown tremendously, and today we have over 65 clients in 5 market sectors. We are, however, deliberate about selecting clients whose needs align with our core competency—providing superior logistics support for products where demand is independent, product value is relatively high, and service is critical. Like most rapidly growing companies, we’ve had to adopt more and more process discipline and structure to help us manage the sheer number of operations and functions we have, and to help us drive consistency and efficiency. The best processes in the world, though, don’t guarantee success. Processes, plus great tools (like our integrated systems)—driven by great people—make the difference. Though the number of people in the division has grown dramatically since the division’s inception in 1987, we’ve always had, and continue to have great people. We now have over 11,500 professionals working on 6 continents to make sure our clients’ needs are met, day in and day out. They are incredibly talented, are constantly driving for improvement, and are dedicated to doing whatever it takes to serve the customer. The logistics business is ultimately about people and relationships. Fortunately we have the people on our team who have what it takes. They’re pulling together as one team to make Cat Logistics successful. I call them our “secret weapon.”

As a 25-year Caterpillar employee, what’s kept you interested and passionate about your career?

Caterpillar has been a great place to learn and grow. I’ve had the opportunity to work in a variety of functional areas, all while working for the same company. Most people have to quit and start over to have that diversity of experience. I’ve enjoyed every area I’ve worked in, learned a tremendous amount, and am still learning every day. I’m passionate about our products and services, and our vision for the future. Being a part of delivering Vision 2020, our recently-defined corporate strategy is extremely exciting. Successfully executing that strategy will put Caterpillar in a phenomenal leadership position. And finally, I can’t help but stay interested and passionate about the company when I get to work with such a great team of people every day. I know those words are often used casually, but we have something very special here, and maybe I’m especially attuned to it since I left the company for several years and didn’t live in that environment. The teamwork at Caterpillar is incredible. No matter who you are, or what level, people are dedicated to giving you whatever help you need to serve the customer, or to just do your job better. I experienced it my first day on the job, and I still see it and experience it every day. I could tell you story after story of the help and support I’ve received from my coworkers during my career. We help each other and we learn from each other. Team Caterpillar is real, and is truly a competitive differentiator for the company.

You’re a member of the Board of Commissioners for the Greater Peoria Airport Authority. Discuss the new GPAA’s recent hiring of a new executive director.

Ken Spirito and his family came to Peoria from Biloxi, Miss., where Ken was the airport director. Ken’s extensive experience dealing with local, state, and federal officials will be a great asset to the Airport Authority and the community as we position the Peoria International Airport (PIA) for long-term growth opportunities in central Illinois. Ken has a broad background in commercial air service development, has always maintained excellent relationships with the local military units adjoining the airports he’s served, and has extensive hands-on experience in air terminal renovation projects. The latter will come in handy as the PIA undertakes its much-needed terminal renovation. Ken is energetic, enthusiastic, and very dedicated to his customers and employees. The leadership and dedication he exhibited while getting the Biloxi airport operational in the aftermath of last year’s Gulf Coast hurricanes was tremendous.

How important is air service in central Illinois to area businesses?

Just like a business, a community must either choose to grow or accept the inevitable decline. Standing still isn’t an option. Having competitive air service to and from the destinations most desired by central Illinois businesses is critical to our growth. Ken has already begun facilitating meetings with area businesses and airline representatives to enable the airlines to understand, and then respond to the “voice of the customer.”

Tell us about SkillsUSA and your involvement.

SkillsUSA is a partnership of students, teachers, and industry representatives working together to ensure America has a skilled work force. The organization is made up of over 284,000 high school students, post-secondary students, and instructors. The SkillsUSA applied method of instruction prepares the students for technical careers and also provides educational experiences in leadership, teamwork, citizenship, and character development. It emphasizes total quality at work: high standards, superior work skills, lifelong education, pride in the dignity of work, and community service.

Obviously Caterpillar is interested in ensuring the availability of a high-quality technical work force. Our future depends on it. Caterpillar and Caterpillar dealers have been supporting SkillsUSA (previously known as VICA) for many years. The support has ranged from providing input on the skill requirements we’re seeking in future graduates, donating instructors and training equipment, serving as technical committee members, contest judges, state and national board members, providing financial support, and hiring graduates. I first became involved seven years ago when my manager at the time, Bob Flint, asked me to join the Youth Development Foundation (YDF), SkillsUSA’s philanthropic arm. Bob provided great leadership to the YDF and was moving on to the national board of directors. I became a director on the national board three years ago.

My involvement with this organization has truly been energizing. Each year I get the opportunity to see the students compete in the National Skills Championships held in Kansas City. Top students participate in 77 different trade, technical, and leadership fields. The students’ technical skills are top-notch, but so are their leadership and communication skills. If you doubt there are really any quality young people available to hire into technical careers, let me get you in touch with some SkillsUSA students. They’re amazing!

Have you had a mentor at Caterpillar?

I’ve been fortunate to have had many mentors during my career. Not in the formal sense, with an assigned mentor, structured relationship, and so on; it’s been more along the lines of someone taking an interest in me and reaching out, or me seeing someone I admired and wanted to learn from, so I reached out to them and they responded. I’ve benefited a lot from “mentoring by osmosis,” where I’ve learned a lot from people just by watching them, listening to them, and asking questions. I’ve been fortunate to have worked around a lot of leader/teachers over the years, and I’d guess many of them don’t even know that they’ve had a strong influence on my development and career. I can think of so many, at all different levels, and I owe a lot to them. It’s risky to single anyone out, but I think it’s appropriate to mention Bob Flint’s mentorship specifically. I first met Bob when I was a supervisor in the Reman group, part of the overall Service Department that Bob managed. He combined his engineering background with strong commercial ability, a quiet but firm leadership style, common sense, and a good sense of humor. I learned a lot from watching and listening, and asking questions, and Bob was always good about explaining the bigger picture when he answered. It was never overt teaching—he just loved what he was doing and wanted to share that knowledge with people who wanted to learn. One day Bob offered me a job as Reman Division Manager. That was a very gutsy move on his part at the time. I was young, female, and that move made me the only Division Manager in his group without a technical background. I’m sure there were a lot of people wondering what in the world he was thinking. I accepted the job, and talk about discretionary effort—I worked very, very hard to make sure the business succeeded and that I didn’t let him down after he went so far out on a limb for me. That assignment was a pivotal point in my career. I’ve often shared that story with others who have wondered whether a person being considered for a particular job was “ready.” And not surprisingly, they can often relate a similar story. There’s a great lesson to us all as we make people decisions. The candidate may not be completely ready, but shouldn’t we consider taking a chance on them, just like someone did once or even several times with us during the course of our careers?

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received? What advice would you give a woman who’s beginning her career?

My advice for anyone starting a career would fall into these areas:
• Learn as much as you can about the business. Stretch beyond your specific assignment to understand the broader context. Who or what influences the input you receive? Who uses or is affected by the outcome of your work? Regardless of how remote the impact may be, how does your job affect our end user and his or her impression of the value of your company’s products and services? How do we make money? Our customers? Our dealers? Be incessantly curious. You learn a lot that way, and life is a lot more interesting along the way.

• Be passionate about what you’re doing. If you can’t get excited about your product, service, or some aspect of what you make possible, make a change. Find something you really love, because without this passion, I don’t know how you can give your customers and your company your best effort. I have to confess that every time I watch our equipment operating, or watch a product demo, my heart beats faster and the adrenaline starts flowing.

• Work hard. This may sound old fashioned, but I think putting forth your best effort ultimately helps distinguish you, and you learn a lot in the process.

• The spiritual/family/career balancing formula works. Paying attention to only one or two of the three elements doesn’t.

• Be yourself. Male or female, you have unique talents and a unique style. Know what these are and be comfortable enough with yourself to use them. A company doesn’t want or need a group of people who think and act exactly alike. We need diversity of thought, experiences, and people to challenge conventional wisdom and innovate.

What would you like to talk about that hasn’t been asked?

I’d like to talk about giving back. Interviews like these always make me reflect on how blessed I’ve been in my life, especially by people around me who have always been willing to take the time to teach and support me. I can’t tell you how humbling this is. There’s no way to pay back this debt directly. The best I can do is try to pass on the same gift to others. It’s a great responsibility and my great privilege to be able to say “thank you”—to give back—in this way. TPW