Key Team Members

-- Robin L. Lawton --

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Robin Lawton is an internationally recognized expert in creating rapid strategic alignment between enterprise objectives and the Voice of the Customer.  Rob is president of International Management Technologies, Inc., which he founded in 1985.  Mr. Lawton coined the term “customer-centered culture” (also known as C3) in his 1993 best-selling book, Creating a Customer-Centered Culture: Leadership in Quality, Innovation and Speed (5-star rated at Amazon).

He has extensive experience directing both strategic and operational improvement initiatives. He has developed and deployed powerful but easy-to-understand principles, strategies and tools. They are used to design, measure and improve strategic excellence, service, knowledge work, customer satisfaction and innovation. Representative results achieved from his work include the following:

Mr. Lawton has been cited by seasoned quality professionals as making profound, yet practical contributions to leadership practices, equivalent to those of Dr. Edwards Deming. Dr. Deming became well-known in the last century, late in his career, for his management principles and focus on process improvement that was particularly well-suited for mature industrial age enterprises. Mr. Lawton’s work is seen as having similar importance for the service and knowledge-intensive enterprise of the 21st century, with special focus on new ways for understanding the Voice of the Customer and translating them into satisfying, innovative products and services that strengthen the practicing enterprise’s mission and strategic objectives. Where Deming promoted the use of statistical methods, Lawton’s Voice of the Customer linguistic tools and methods enable language to be treated with almost mathematical rigor but with an intuitive simplicity that is fast and easy to learn.

IMT Clients include award-winning organizations such as Mayo Clinic, Motorola, AT&T, Group Health Cooperative, American Honda, Siemens, American Express, Eastman Kodak, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, ITT, Imperial Oil, Missouri Department of Revenue, Affinity Plus Credit Union, City of Louisville, Raytheon, Naval Air Depot, California State University, Pinellas County Utilities, U.S. Department of Defense, state and federal agencies from Alaska to Vermont and many others not yet so well known.

Rob has the unique ability to develop and articulate alternatives to complex organizational and competitive challenges. He makes the solutions feel like common sense. Rob has a combination of excellent communication skills, leadership vision and bias for action that compels others to follow. He is known as a dynamic innovator who inspires others to think creatively and push the boundaries of what was previously thought impossible. He is listed in the directory of Who’s Who of Business Leaders and was named Quality Guru by American Society for Quality.

Mr. Lawton is an engaging, humorous and interactive speaker. He was ranked #1 of 88 speakers in 2007 by an international organization and has been repeatedly named “best speaker” by hosting organizations. His keynote presentations combine high technical content with an entertaining, motivational delivery style that is truly inspiring and unique. Rob has been featured at many international, national and regional conferences sponsored by such organizations as the Japan Management Association, Chamber of Commerce, Federal Executive Board, Association for Manufacturing Excellence (AME), Six Sigma Forum, Quality Institute for Healthcare, American Marketing Association (AMA), International Standards Organization (ISO), American Society for Quality (ASQ) and others. He has taught Six Sigma Master Black Belts and other skilled change leaders to advance their understanding and practice of leading edge Voice of the Customer methods.

Prior to starting his firm, Rob worked as an oil well laborer, administrator at a maximum security prison, night club entertainer, teacher of English as a second language, educational program evaluation researcher, leader of quality and productivity initiatives at a major computer firm and other interesting positions. This unusual, non-linear career path has enabled him to routinely view a problem or challenge from an unconventional perspective. His two-time stint as foster parent to teenage girls offers proof that he is also an adaptive optimist. His teenage adoptive daughter, a Gypsy (Roma) by ethnicity, will testify to that.

These experiences, plus his several years living in Latin America and working with management from many countries, have given Rob special appreciation for and insights regarding the importance of cultural uniqueness and values. They have led to Rob’s striking ability to develop and articulate alternatives to complex organizational and competitive challenges, making the solutions feel suspiciously like common sense. His passion and bias for dramatic and sustainable results inspires others to surpass their goals.

Mr. Lawton is a featured guest on TV, radio and Internet programs. In addition to his best-selling first book, he has authored, contributed to or been referenced in many publications, including these books by other authors:
• Beyond Strategic Vision, Effective Corporate Action with Hoshin Planning, M. Cowley, E. Domb
• The Lean Extended Enterprise: Moving Beyond the Four Walls to Value Stream Excellence, T. Burton
• The Kaizen Blitz: Accelerating Breakthroughs in Productivity and Performance, A. Laraia
• The Performance Improvement Toolkit: The Guide to Knowledge Based Improvement, R. Gerst
• ISO 9001:2000 Quality Management System Design, J. Schlickman
• Tools to Create Great Corporate Strategies Using Insights from History and Science, Dudik & Dudik
• We Don’t Make Widgets, K. Miller
• The Innovator’s Toolkit, D. Silverstein, P. Samuel, N. DeCaarlo

Mr. Lawton has a B.A. in sociology and M.A. in educational psychology from Michigan State University.

Additional Key Team Members
	Rob Lawton President, Author, Customer Strategist, Keynote Speaker Lakewood Ranch, Florida 941-907-0666 E-mail Rob			Peggy Perkins Partner, Director Customer Relationship, C3 Team Facilitator Lakewood Ranch, Florida 941-907-0666 E-mail Peggy
	Dar Schwanbeck Managing Director IMT Canada 780-460-1013 E-mail Dar			Mitch Witten C3 Consultant & Facilitator Louisville, KY 941-907-0666 E-mail Mitch
	Ken Miller Consulting Partner 941-907-0666 E-mail Ken