Lean implementation is like cleaning your room. Only the room is an entire company. And the company hasn’t been cleaned in a long time, if ever.
Brian S. Montanari, 32, will implement that business philosophy as newly appointed chief operating officer at HABCO Inc. in Glastonbury. His role will include leading HABCO’s development strategy and Lean initiatives.
“Lean implementation identifies waste and eliminates it from the process,” Montanari said. “It’s about getting more business, finding other avenues for sales, being more effective while keeping customer requirements in mind and doing that when we want it, how we want it, on time every time.”
The Newington native began as an undergrad at Siena College, where he graduated in 1997 with a degree in finance. Montanari also received his MBA degree in 1999 from Central Connecticut State University.
“I worked a summer job at Wiremold Co. in West Hartford driving a forklift,” Montanari said. “The company is a Lean leader in the country and I learned their common business practice.”
Montanari went to C&M Corp. with his Lean knowledge after an associate became vice president there. He also brought Lean principles to Respironics Novametrix in Wallingford.
Montanari’s most recent experience was at HID Global where he moved from consultant to plant manager. As a partner in his own Lean business, Lean Depot, Montanari saw the potential for strategic help at HABCO.
“It’s a small company with under 30 employees so I wear many different hats,” he said. “I’ve been working on creating a new mission statement and policy deployment, putting the right systems in place today to handle future operations. I see us growing exponentially, and I want us to capture that potential.”
The East Hampton resident and father of two also is an instructor at Eastern Connecticut State University where he has taught Lean Management classes for three years. n
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Emily Boisvert is a Hartford Business Journal staff writer.
