Going to Great Latitudes to Develop Caterpillar Leaders

08/15/2013 11:06 AM

Bradley University faculty and staff for the Caterpillar leadership program Powering Up – Americas recently enjoyed the opportunity to strengthen their partnership with Caterpillar.  Members of the team toured Caterpillar Brazil Ltda. for the purpose of familiarizing program faculty with the challenges and opportunities in the region. The tour was supported by Bernadette Manso, Regional Manager, Core Industries Sales Execution, and hosted by Dennis Ventura, Industry Sales Manager, both of Global Construction & Infrastructure. 

Bradley University is honored to have been selected by Caterpillar to deliver the program for leaders in North and South America.  As the sole provider of this particular leadership development program in the region, Bradley University faculty and staff are committed to furthering their partnership with Caterpillar.  They continuously seek opportunities to keep the curriculum current and relevant to the global audience.  Their intent is to globalize the curriculum, and this tour presented an opportunity to meet that goal. 

The trip began with a visit to the Caterpillar facility in Piracicaba where they were hosted by Suely Agostinho, Human Resources & Corporate Affairs Director. She provided an overview of Brazil’s political and economic environment, highlighting Caterpillar’s incredible growth opportunities in the region.  While in Piracicaba, they also visited Sotreq, the Caterpillar Dealer holding 80 percent of the territory in Brazil.  In Curitiba, they visited the Caterpillar dealer, Pesa, which gave the team valuable insights into the operations and strategies of Brazil’s two distinct Caterpillar dealerships.  The tour concluded in Sao Paulo with a presentation by Banco Caterpillar which provided the team with a better understanding of the workings of Cat Financial in Brazil. 

Many Caterpillar leaders will benefit from the experience.  Bradley University faculty are already incorporating their knowledge into the Powering Up curriculum.  Bradley University serves about 90 leaders each year in the program, so the benefits will quickly multiply.  The result is certain to equip Caterpillar leaders with the skills necessary to thrive in the global business environment.