How People Are Driving Successful Business Outcomes in Our Tech-Centric World

Throughout the year, we acknowledge the innovation awards Zebra employees, partners and customers have won around the world. And bi-annually, here on the Your Edge blog, we celebrate the innovation they are successfully driving, the problems they are solving and the example they are setting for all of us.

Why are we consistently sharing these success stories?

These are people we care about – people we’re invested in. We want them to excel in life; we want to make it known when they make a positive difference in others’ lives.

One of the many things I’ve learned to appreciate throughout my 30 years in the technology industry: people are what make businesses successful. People have always been the heart, soul, and passion that drives every successful business. No matter how smart technology becomes or how much technology we utilize to drive automation in our businesses, people will always remain the most critical component of any business.

Technology can help boost employees’ visibility, awareness, productivity and impact, but it is in fact people who ultimately make the difference and successfully drive businesses forward.

Embrace technology for its ability to gain greater awareness of the world around you, augment human’s speed and visual limitations, and increase the speed of data analysis. Appreciate how it can help connect the dots in seemingly disparate data sets.

However, never forget that human connection and understanding is what ultimately leads to the advancement and use of technology which is an enabler for long-term sustainable success for any business. 

This is one of the reasons why I’m especially proud to celebrate the incredible achievements of individual Zebra employees during the first half of this year…

• Chuck Bolen, Vice President of Advanced Markets & Technologies, received the AIM Global’s Clive Hohberger Technology Award.
• James Lawton, Vice President and General Manager, Robotics Automation and John Wirthlin, Industry Principal, Manufacturing, Transportation and Logistics, were named to the 2023 Supply & Demand Chain Executive’s (SDCE) Pros to Know list.
• Tony Palcheck, Vice President of Zebra Ventures, was named to the Global Corporate Venturing Power 100.
• CFO Nathan Winters was an honoree on Crain’s Chicago Business 2023 Notable CFO list.
• Jenny Krummenacher was named to CRN’s 2023 Women of the Channel list.
• Cristina Chaidez, Director of Manufacturing and Test Engineering, was named a 2023 Women MAKE Awards Honoree.
• Oliver Horrell, Inside Sales Account Manager, was among four recipients of the British APCO Ian Thompson Bursary Award 2023.
• Therese Van Ryne, Senior Director, Global External Communications, was named a “Leader” by Ragan Communications in the latest class of Top Women in Communications.

As well as Zebras’ many impressive collective efforts with colleagues, customers and partners, including these…

• The Hunt Country Components deployment of an RFID solution jointly developed by Zebra and its partners ValuTrack and HAL Systems was given a 2023 Top Supply Chain Projects Award by Supply & Demand Chain Executive.
• Our Zebra Experience Center briefing team was recognized with a “Momentum Award” from the Association of Briefing Program Managers as part of the 2023 World Class Briefing Awards program.
• Zebra was voted the winner in the Manufacturing category of the DigiconAsia DX Solution Excellence Awards.
• Zebra received a Manhattan Value Partners Excellence Award.
• CDP named Zebra to its 2022 Supplier Engagement Leaderboard.
• Zebra’s PartnerConnect program was recognized as a 5-Star Partner Program in the CRN Program Partner Guide.
• Zebra was named one of the 2023 Top 100 Inbound Logistics Providers by Inbound Logistics magazine.

I’m also proud of the culture Zebra has built, as recognized by our employees and Newsweek, who named Zebra as one of the 2023 Top 100 Global Most Loved Workplaces as well as One of America’s Greatest Workplaces for Diversity.

The creativity, curiosity, and compassion of the people at Zebra are a key reason why our company is still so relevant and trusted more than 50+ years after inception. Our people prioritize human connection and well-being. They want to make the world a better place for all, and they focus their days on driving improved work and life experiences for others. For that, I am grateful every day.

Bill Burns has been named Chief Executive Officer, Zebra Technologies, effective March 1, 2023. 

Bill has more than 30 years of experience in the technology sector and joined Zebra Technologies in 2015. In his prior role as Chief Product & Solutions Officer, he oversaw the strategy, investments, and development of Zebra’s expansive portfolio of products and solutions. During this time, Bill extended Zebra’s market share leadership across its core businesses while entering adjacent and expansion markets, delivered on the company’s Enterprise Asset Intelligence vision, and strengthened Zebra’s strategic relationships with its customers and partners. 

Prior to joining Zebra, Bill served as Chief Executive Officer of Embrane, a Silicon Valley-based venture capital backed startup which was acquired by Cisco in April 2015. Prior to joining Embrane, Bill served as Chief Executive Officer of Spirent Communications, a global leader in test and measurement solutions publicly traded on the London Stock Exchange. He has also held various executive and sales leadership roles at Tellabs, Inc. 

Bill has a Master of Business Administration from Temple University, a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Misericordia University, and an Associate Degree in Engineering from Pennsylvania State University.