Management Team
Harvey Baker, Chief Operating Officer
Harvey Baker is responsible for the overall strategic planning and profitability of DICKEY-john. He has more than 30 years experience in the leadership of engineering and electronics based companies.
Prior to joining DICKEY-john, Harvey served as President of Gillis Associated Industries, a division of Leggett and Platt in Chicago, Illinois. He was also Vice President – Enterprise Systems at Labarge, Inc. in St. Louis, where he had responsibility for IT, supply chain, lean initiatives, and corporate restructuring. Other prior associations include his tenure with Harris Corporation as Vice President of Manufacturing and Customer Service in the Broadcast Division.
Harvey has a BSEE from Union College in Schenectady, New York, and an MBA from Columbia University School of Business in New York City.
Tom Elmore, Vice President of Business Development
Tom has more than 25 years of experience in engineering and agriculture. He spent over 15 years in our Engineering department leading a very talented engineering group as they developed our latest advanced sensor and monitoring products. Tom has always had strong connections with the Marketing side of the business using his own experiences from his 1000+ acre row crop operation assisting key customers define new products and applications. Tom’s role in Business Development is to build those relationships into stronger partnerships and establishing strategic alliances for next generation systems and technologies that will allow DICKEY-john to maintain is strong leadership position. Tom has served as a member of the Executive Management Team since 1998.
Prior to his experience with DICKEY-john Corporation, Tom served in numerous Engineering and Program Management positions for Alliant TechSystems Incorporated and Honeywell Incorporated in
Nick Kates, Corporate Controller
Nick has more than 18 years of finance experience with both public and private manufacturing companies with revenues from $150 million to $25 billion. He is responsible for overseeing the finance and IT functions of DICKEY-john, ensuring their continued success in serving and partnering with the many other functions within the company. Nick joined DICKEY-john in 2008.
Prior to joining DICKEY-john, Nick had served in various accounting and finance roles for manufacturing companies throughout the Midwest, including IDEAL Industries, Tate & Lyle, and Fiskars, Inc. Nick earned his BA in accounting from Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois.
Jeff Schertz, Vice President-Operations
Jeff has more than 15 years of experience in physics, engineering, quality, and process improvement. He is responsible for the organization and oversight of DICKEY-john Corporation´s production force. He works to ensure the continuous process improvement of key manufacturing processes and is responsible for implementing flow-manufacturing techniques. Jeff has been a member of the Executive Management Team since 2001.
Prior to joining DICKEY-john Corporation in 1995, Jeff served in several capacities including Physicist and Quality Engineer as a civilian employee for the United States Navy in Virginia and Indiana. Jeff earned a BS in physics from Illinois State University, Normal, and earned ASC certifications in Quality Engineering, Reliability Engineering, and Quality Management. He received an MBA from the University of Illinois, Springfield.
Jean Wheeler, Director-Human Resources
Jean has been with DICKEY-john for more than 16 years, serving on the Executive Staff for 14 of those years. As part of the company's core values, Jean monitors and promotes the integrity of not only the organization but the workforce that supports it. The company's expectations of its employees are heavily weighted in the quality of work produced. We are very proud that with an employee base of nearly 300 employees, 62 of the active employees have been with the company for more than 30 years.
Jean joined DICKEY-john after numerous years in the legal and banking professions, serving as Director of Administration for a Chicago-based law firm and as Senior Vice President of American Savings Bank in Springfield, Illinois. She is a graduate of Southern Illinois University in Communications.
Bob Wright, Director-Engineering
Bob joined DICKEY-john in 2004 and has 18 years experience in electronics and product development. He oversees the development of DICKEY-john products from concept through implementation. Bob continues to inspire his team of engineers to create new and increasingly advanced electronics to aid in the application, analysis, and streamlining of products for both the agricultural and public works markets.
Prior to his experience with DICKEY-john Corporation, Bob served in the US Air Force and numerous electronics design and product management roles in medical ultrasound and mobile satellite TV technologies. Bob earned a BS in electronics engineering from Seattle Pacific University.