Bill Bremer, Principal and Senior Consultant

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Summary of Experience

Bill Bremer is a Principal with Kestrel Management’s Chicago area practice based in Lisle, Illinois and heads the Food Compliance Consulting Group and works as a generalist for other industries in compliance and business improvement.  A seasoned practitioner, Bill also focuses on sustainability, waste reduction, process improvement/transformation, restructuring and EHS.  He has worked in manufacturing and distribution operations for over thirty years and has expertise in regulatory compliance, business planning, general management, product planning and development, process design and optimization,  engineering, production control, procurement, SCM, organizational design, ERP/information systems, technical services and quality.

Prior to joining Kestrel Management Services, Bill was a COO of Bissinger’s Inc. a specialty food and confection company; Director of Procurement for The Parksite Group, a building materials marketing and distribution company; and Managing Director for RSM McGladrey, a major national management consulting firm focused on operations consulting.  Bill advanced to this level at RSM McGladrey during 10 year tenure.  In these roles he has led management, compliance and assurance activities meeting business strategy and operations, HACCP, FDA GMP, EHS and overall operations management requirements.

He has worked in variety areas of industries and has held the positions of COO, operations manager, general/plant manager, and director of manufacturing and technical director, EHS lead/coordinator.  While managing a $660 million division of Bristol-Myers Squibb chemical specialty and consumer/industrial products group, Bill directed all activities for the multiple chemical production and distribution facilities of an independent business unit.  In this role, he maintained full management responsibility and implemented long-term strategic planning, business and product plans, EHS compliance, GMP and Total Quality Management.  Bill advanced to this senior level at Bristol-Myers Squibb during 15-year tenure.

Bill has also worked as a consultant to tier I, II and III organizations, and closely-held and privately owned businesses.  In his consulting capacity, he has worked with clients to establish plans, timetables and policies to identify and resolve their business, marketing, manufacturing and distribution challenges, ensure compliance with government regulations, and run their businesses more profitably and effectively.  His overall focus is to integrate the organization, optimize profit performance and maximize utilization of resources.  Bill has experience in a full range of  industries, including: food, chemical, process, construction materials, agricultural, metals, and industrial products; as well as service organizations with focus including operational assessments, product development and production planning, operations management development, process improvement, and information technology planning and strategy.

Education

Bill is a graduate of Lake Forest College (Lake Forest, IL) with a degree in Biology and Chemistry and a Certificate in Business from Indiana University Kelley School of Business, and has completed course work in the Master’s of Project Management program at the Keller Graduate School of Management in Chicago.  Additionally, Bill is a member of APICS and has passed certification of lead assessor for ISO 9000.  He has led education programs on various other operations and compliance topics.  Bill is a past member of the Beta, Beta, Beta Biology Honor Society and is a current Alumni Board Member of Lake Forest College.