Unstoppable People - Chris Poole - Director of Business Development - PSbyM

Milliken’s Unstoppable People series highlights Milliken & Company associates who guide us to success and embody our values: integrity, excellence, innovation, sustainability, and people.

Chris Poole’s career—and his life—is a study in the generalist mentality. For him, a generalist mindset is taking the opportunity to stay curious and embrace excellence holistically while building the capabilities of others.

Excellence, a core value for Milliken, is showcased throughout our operations. “Milliken has been investing in excellence within its businesses for many, many years. As we began transforming our approach to health and safety and quality back in the late 1980s and then transitioned into operational and supply chain excellence in the early 2000s, the last 35 years of know-how highlights what Milliken Performance System [Milliken’s proprietary operational excellence program] is all about. Our job as Performance Solutions by Milliken is to share our know-how with other organizations and help them achieve their excellence ambitions.”

Formed in 2007, Performance Solutions by Milliken is the consulting business of Milliken & Company. “We teach, coach, and mentor other organizations to help them build excellence capabilities and develop their organizational cultures.” And this team knows their stuff. “Almost everybody on our team was a part of Milliken & Company, winning coveted awards for excellence. And that's the same for me.

“I joined in 1993 straight from the university, as an industrial engineer in the U.K., and then moved through various operational leadership & excellence roles. Milliken really began its operational excellence journey back in the mid-1990s, and my plants were amongst the first to deploy this mindset in Europe. I was at the heart of building that excellence culture at two Milliken locations, and subsequently supported business acquisition integrations internationally. As a team, our efforts earned us the coveted TPM Excellence awards. Excellence has guided my career within Milliken for more than 25 years now.”

Taking his expansive operational excellence knowledge into Performance Solutions by Milliken not only complemented the business's needs, it also provided Chris flexibility and growth opportunities beyond traditional operations roles. “This novel business provides a career ladder for people seeking new challenges and experiences—outside of the traditionally structured senior leadership ladder.” Performance Solutions by Milliken associates gain vast experience working as Practitioners, which can then translate back into other operations verticals at Milliken.

"To be perfectly honest, I didn't yet know what I wanted to do as a graduate. So, I chose a pretty unique degree, which isn't widely available, and it worked very well for me. I spent half the week in the engineering school and the other half in the business school whilst experiencing two industrial placements. I got to play at a wider, broader set of subjects and then, in theory, could specialize later. But in fact, 30 years later, I'm still using both my engineering and  business backgrounds every day. My work, this degree, all of it, prepared me for that generalist, adaptive approach." Chris feels just as comfortable talking shop with the floor employees as he does running financial numbers with clients’ executive teams.

"I think my interest in consciously being a curious generalist, as opposed to being too deep in one area, has been effective for this role.  This mindset is something that I've always enjoyed, and it's the same in my personal life. I don't really like going deep into one hobby. I like to try multiple different things. I like traveling to different places. I think it's just a philosophy that suits my mindset and my family, too. With our three children, my wife and I are raising three curious 'generalists with interests,' as it were."

In addition to spending time with his family and hobbies, Chris volunteers with two impactful charities: RENATE, an anti-human trafficking organization, and New Rhythms for Glasgow, a community-based wellness provider. You won't be surprised to learn that his professional experience comes in handy in these volunteer positions, helping the leadership teams develop strategies to grow their impact.

"You know the grey area?  Sometimes, you know it's ok not to be completely comfortable yet. That comfort will come with time and experience. Excellence takes time. Enjoy the journey!"

Want to join our team of #UnstoppablePeople? Visit our careers webpage to learn more about your next opportunity.

Do you know an Unstoppable Person you’d like to recognize? Nominate them at [email protected].