SEL Begins Its 41st Year with Leadership Changes

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At a Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) Board of Directors meeting, President Ed Schweitzer asked CEO Dave Whitehead to assume the role of President and asked Chief Business and Financial Officer Nestegard to assume the role of Executive Vice President.

Dr. Schweitzer also requested his position be changed from President to Founder and shared the following:

“Dave and Joey are already doing an excellent job leading SEL, and at this point, I want to be contributing more as a mentor, inventor, collaborator and teacher. Their promotions recognize their leadership and  our teamwork.

“In December, when I got my annual physical, I asked the doc to grade my paper. She took her report back and wrote ‘B+’ on it. That’s not too bad for a 77-year-old desk jockey! I guess I can still buy green bananas!

“SEL is running strong with 100% employee ownership and coming up on 7,000 of us. I love inventing the future side by side with Dave, Joey and our entire group of creative, hard-working, intelligent folks who value the customers and industries we serve. It’s an honor for us to be part of moving energy at the speed of light, integrating new sources of energy and keeping the lights on no matter what—and finding solutions to cyber, communications, metering and other challenges, too.”

Schweitzer has set the strategic direction of SEL since its founding in 1984. He is renowned for his many contributions to the electric power industry as an engineer and prolific inventor as well as for his visionary leadership and approach to business. He likes to say, “We do business the way our moms and dads would want us to!”

Whitehead joined in 1994 as a hardware engineer. He led its Research & Development division for more than a decade before taking on the roles of Chief Operating Officer and then Chief Executive Officer.

“I am incredibly honored to be offered this role and thankful for the experiences and opportunities I’ve had at SEL, especially getting to work closely with Ed,” said Whitehead. “I am grateful for his mentorship and friendship.”

Nestegard joined the company in 2002 as a finance professional. Over the years, he has taken on increasing responsibilities, eventually becoming the Chief Business and Financial Officer in 2017. He is an advocate for the employee ownership model and its benefits for long-term decision making and business stability. He managed the SEL transition to 100 percent employee-owned in 2009.

“Ed’s guidance and teaching have been invaluable to my growth and to the success of SEL. I've learned more about business from Ed than I ever did from business school,” said Nestegard. “His passion for innovation and his commitment to our employees, company, and industry have set a high standard that inspires us all. I look forward to building on his vision and leading SEL into an exciting future.”

Dave, Joey, and Ed all received degrees from Washington State University.