Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1501483
40 PCB007 MAGAZINE I JUNE 2023 Absolutely. Now, what's your educational background and did you know you wanted to be in automation or robotics? I went to Old Dominion University where I got my bachelor's in mechanical engineer- ing technologies. I wanted to be in something really industrial. I grew up watching "How It's Made." I just love that kind of stuff. I watch YouTube videos and processes. You know, it's kind of cheesy, but I love it. If I put something together, those puzzle pieces work perfectly to create what I want to create. I just like that feel- ing. It's very rewarding. Fast forward 10 or 15 years and tell me what you see in your future career? I want to be at OMRON for years to come. I'm still young in my career and I can't say I want to be anywhere but the lead engineer of the entire company. You gotta shoot as high as possible. Always. That's ambitious. Yeah, of course. But if you ask someone in the NFL, "So, do you think you'll win the Super Bowl this year?" Of course, they always say yes. But if they were to say no, then you can guarantee they won't win that year. You've got to aim high. What final thoughts do you have to share? At OMRON's technology kickoff, we had a guest speaker, Dr. Philip Voglewede, a professor of mechan- ical engineering at Marquette Uni- versity. He said that in your work, you will fail a lot. at's pretty important to rememb e r — t h i n g s m i g h t blow up in your face before you finally have a successful product. You will learn from those mistakes, for sure. Exactly. I've made mistakes that I'll hopefully not make again, because I have actually experi- enced that failure. Right, that's the point. We can learn more from our mistakes than we do our successes, as it turns out. Joe, I appreciate your time. is is a really awesome experience. I've never been interviewed before, so this is really cool. I appreciate it. PCB007 Joseph LaRosa