As Gary Hermansteps into the role of COO at B.C.’s Industry Training Authority (ITA), he knows the organization’s got its work cut out for it.
The ITA is the provincial government organization that leads and co-ordinates the province’s skilled trades system, including managing apprenticeships and setting program standards. And as B.C. industry and politicians look for solutions to avert the skills crisis facing a host of industry sectors in B.C., the ITA will be a key player in attracting and training new B.C. tradespeople.
Herman, 52, will also be a key player in driving the organization forward – a task he relishes.
“While the looming skills shortage is a significant challenge, what a wonderful challenge to have,” he said.
Herman pointed out that, with $73 billion in major capital projects spanning across a large spectrum of B.C. industries, the province is on the cusp of “an economic boom unlike we’ve ever seen before.”
“Imagine for a minute how many areas of the world would like to have $73 billion in capital just waiting to be spent.”
And Herman isn’t just passionate about the problem-solving aspect of B.C.’s skills gap – he’s sold on the trades themselves.
Herman recalls, as a teenager in Ontario, getting some key advice from a high school machine shop teacher with a trades background in tool and die making.
“He said, ‘You should consider going into tool and die for two reasons: one, you’ll never be out of a job, and two, you can take your career to wherever you want to be.”
That advice in 1978 convinced the 17-year-old Herman to launch into seven years of apprenticing in three different trades: millwrighting, tool and die making and die sinking. Decades later, Herman still credits his shop teacher for giving him some of his best career advice to date.
“That was fantastic advice that he gave me. I’m grateful for that.”
Herman said his trades foundation has paid off throughout his career, but he didn’t stop his training there. While apprenticing, Herman was given a second pivotal piece of career advice from a work supervisor: take business courses.
“He said, ‘You’ll never go wrong if you take business – you can apply that to tool and die and have your own tool-and-die shop some day, or you can move up into management at any manufacturing company anywhere, because you’ve got the technical skills and you’ve got the business skills to go with it.’”
Herman took that advice to heart and, while apprenticing, embarked on a multi-year night-school stint to earn a business administration diploma.
That combination of trades and business skills allowed Herman to chart his course into management roles in Ontario’s manufacturing sector, where he gained expertise in tool room and maintenance supervision, operations management, purchasing, logistics and manufacturing engineering.
By 1994, he was general manager of a small division of automotive supplier ThyssenKrupp Fabco.
“I was able to put all of those skills – technical and business skills, and the breadth of experience – together into this small business unit as a general manager and kind of run it as your own little business,” he said.
While in that role, Herman set his sights on being a vice-president. To further that end, he took an executive MBA at Michigan State University – all the while applying his new business knowledge to his management work.
Herman said his degree helped him secure numerous promotions, as he rose to become vice-president of manufacturing and then vice-president of engineering and procurement.
Herman said his roles with the company involved learning “how to spin a thousand plates at the same time and keep them all going.”
He explained that the company manufactured parts for a constantly changing lineup of vehicle models. For example, about 40% of the company’s business turned over during his final two years there.
Paul Mendonca was vice-president of HR at ThyssenKrupp while Herman held his vice-president roles with the company. He’s now managing director at Windsor-based Resultz Human Capital and Risk Management.
Mendonca described Herman as a “straight shooter” who brought key trades expertise to the company’s executive ranks. He said Herman’s hands-on leadership skills were particularly evident in challenging situations, such as the “tough” launch of a Chrysler sports utility vehicle.
As the company faced pressure from its impatient client, Mendonca said Herman was on the ground with plant workers, supporting their performance.
“He made sure he was there from the kickoff of the morning shift and sometimes for the kickoff of the afternoon shift,” said Mendonca. “He would guide them and give them alternative things to think about when they go out on the floor to work, and bring some engineering perspective into the process.”
After 12 years in Ontario’s automotive industry, Herman moved to B.C. to take a job as executive vice-president of operations running eight North American plants for rail trackway company VAE Nortrak.
Approximately three years later, Herman joined contract manufacturing company Ebco Industries as director of operations and quality. He said that while Ebco was smaller than VAE Nortrak, the job brought new layers of complexity, because the company dealt with a range of industries, including mining, oil and gas, hydro and pulp and paper.
“You’re satisfying customers from several different industries who all have very different needs,” he said, noting that the job sharpened his manufacturing management skills further.
When the opportunity at the ITA came up, Herman saw it as “the perfect fit” for where he was in his career.
“I understand what it’s like to work in the trades because I’ve come from that. I also understand what it’s like to have a very good career that’s come from the trades because I’ve been able to do that, too. I’m at a point now in my career with the ITA that I can utilize all of those skills … to see if we can help B.C. with getting more trades development and more skills development to help us with this $73 billion in capital projects.”
As Herman settles into his new role with the ITA, he said he expects to draw on both his trades background and his management experience to lead the organization. He said that, beyond its operations goals, the ITA is battling a key cultural challenge: trying to persuade young British Columbians – and their parents – of the opportunities available through the trades. That’s an arena where he plans to share his experience of achieving success through the trades at ITA outreach activities
“I’ve walked the walk.”
Herman added that his experience positions him to connect with the key stakeholders in the province’s skilled trades system, from tradespeople to employers to young people considering a trades career.
“If a 10-year-old in a school comes up and says ‘Hey, how did you do this?’ or ‘You started as an apprentice and now you’re in this position, can I really achieve that?’ – well, yes you can.”
And as he has always been in his career, Herman is focused on a goal: developing skilled trades in the province to meet B.C.’s $73 billion opportunity.
“If we do that, it means B.C. is going to grow population-wise, we’re going to grow skills-wise, we’re going to grow economically and we will be a much stronger province five years from now than we are now.”
