Born and raised in Akron, a historically industrial community in northeast Ohio, a proud native once walked away from her hometown in search of a collegiate and professional experiences removed from familiar surroundings. In search of new perspectives and accomplishments, she accomplished her goals only to return home to the community that was dearest and most meaningful to her.

“I had been away from home for a while,” said Michelle Ross ‘06, laughing. “It was time to come home, like LeBron.”

The journey of Michelle Ross, an Industrial Engineering graduate from Kettering University, mirrors that of another Akron hero, only replacing the hoop for a computer and the hardwood for a factory floor.

Ross’ father, Sam Ross, is a Civil Engineer in Summit County, Ohio, and encouraged her to pursue engineering.

“I went to several career fairs and my dad was an engineer so he was impressing on me the importance of a co-op,” Ross said. “The single dorm room and the beautiful Recreation Center at Kettering was a big selling point. I just really liked the campus and our strong co-op program and that’s how I chose Kettering.”

Ross excelled in math and science throughout middle and high school but it wasn’t until she attended Goodyear’s “Women in Engineering Day” that she decided to pursue engineering as a career. From there, she enjoyed the practicality of industrial engineering and was motivated by Kettering’s national ranking in the degree program.

“I heard Industrial Engineering was referred to as the business engineering, less math and science but applying the same logic for optimizing and improving things and using data to make decisions,” Ross said. “It was very applicable to what you were learning in school.”

While at Kettering, Ross completed her co-op at LuK USA, a German company in Wooster, Ohio, which manufactures clutches and torque convertors. She was immediately assigned to conduct time studies and simulation modeling for a new product line.

“I had a lot of autonomy,” Ross said. “I was doing true Industrial Engineering studies.”

Ross joined LuK full-time after graduating from Kettering and stayed there until 2009, including an opportunity to work in Stuttgart, Germany for six months at the company’s corporate headquarters. However, as she progressed in the company, she desired a change of direction that would require her to go back to school.

“I wanted to be in upper management,” Ross said. “I felt that I was missing the skills that would get me there. That’s why I decided that I want to go to business school.”

Ross enrolled in Harvard Business School and graduated in 2011. She describes the experience as “enlightening” as she came out of the program feeling more confident while both working and speaking in front of her peers.

From Flint, Wooster, Germany, South Carolina (for an internship with Sealed Air during graduate school) and Boston, Ross had traveled and experienced multiple communities but at this point she was ready to come back home to Akron.

“A lot of my friends and family are in the vicinity of Ohio and I wanted to come back home,” Ross said.

Since not many manufacturing companies recruit students from Harvard Business School, Ross personally reached out to Goodyear in Akron to pursue a potential opportunity.

“I chose Goodyear partly because it’s still a manufacturing company and there's still a connection to engineering,” Ross said. “It’s so tangible, you can see the efforts of your work. I also chose Goodyear because, being a manufacturing company, they would value my engineering degree.”

Ross has been with Goodyear for the last three years and is currently the Manager of Sales and Operations for North American Consumers. Despite her transition from engineering to business, she still uses her undergraduate background daily as it provides a foundational method of thinking, logic and decision-making.

“Kettering was really good for me,” Ross said. “I was a shy person when I came to Kettering but I felt like I was part of a community. It was super easy to get involved and to take leadership positions on campus. It gave me confidence that I could be a manager, and a leader.”