A WERC member since 1985, William (Bill) Miller is an authority on the impact the WERC network can have on a career. That’s because each of his three job moves has resulted from a professional connection he made through WERC.
“I’ve had a very interesting and rewarding career, and WERC played a key part in that,” he says. “The ability to network with and meet industry people at all levels has been the biggest benefit.”
Miller started out picking and packing service parts at Clark Equipment Company in 1972. He next moved into a supervisory role, then project management.
“Clark was where I got my master’s degree in warehousing and distribution, but many of the ideas came from WERC,” Miller says, noting he got involved in the organization – both at the local and national levels – during that time. He’s served as president of the Chicagoland WERCouncil, as a six-year member of the WERC Board of Directors, and as a Conference speaker and P2P moderator.
After 17 years at Clark, Miller moved into third-party logistics (3PL) working for someone he’d met during a Conference. Seven years later, another WERC contact shared an opportunity to start up a new 3PL facility. A third WERC contact led to his current position: Director of Business Development for 3PL Faure Brothers Corp.’s Great Lakes, Gateway and Illiana Transit warehouses.
“Being asked to serve on the national WERC board at the highest level was the greatest honor of my career,” he says. “I encourage anyone who’s thinking of joining to truly get involved with it – be active at the local and national level. The involvement is what brings real value.”
