Banquets

Welcome Banquet

Description

Keynote Speaker: Jake Jacobson

Topics

1.       Fundamental core similarities between engineering principles, common sense, and talent development

2.       Importance of a good fit with your employer when it comes to guiding principles and core beliefs

Bio

John “Jake” Jacobson grew up in Huron, South Dakota, working summers and holidays with the family general contractors in and around his home town.  He always had a keen interest in science and was a licensed amateur “ham” radio operator at the age of 12.  Jake enrolled and began studies at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology directly after high school graduation in 1977.  He received his B.S. degree from Tech on May 16^th, 1981 and married his wife Barbara the following Saturday May 23^rd.  He then began his career with Cargill on June 1^st, 1981.

Over the past 30 plus years, Jake has held a variety of operations management and functional roles, and worked at a variety of locations with Cargill, its Subsidaries, and also spent some time with a joint venture.  Specific operations experiences include corn milling, maintenance & reliability, lactic acid fermentation, polyols production, and a host of other production lines.

With two separate foreign service assignments  (three years in the United Kingdom 1991 - 1994 and then Krefeld Germany 2005 - 2008) he has capitalized on the outstanding opportunites which Cargill has offered him to learn and apply engineering principles… but more importantly the “people side” of the business.

Jake has been very active in continuing to strengthen the relationship between SDSM&T and Cargill the past 25 years.  Cargill has been a generous sponsor of many items as well as a solid destination for talent from the university.

Today, Jake is the global reliability excellence lead for Cargill’s Animal Protein businesses which include beef, pork, poultry, eggs, as well as operations to add further value to these products.

Upon returning from Germany.  Jake and his wife Barbara have made their home in the Minneapolis area He has one daughter, two sons, a daughter in law, and a grandson.