Emerson Exchange 365

Following the traditional welcome from Emerson Global Users Exchange Chairman Doug De Bruin of Clearwater Paper, attendees of this morning’s keynote session will hear from the executive leadership of Emerson Automation Solutions, which was formed earlier this year with a mission to address the automation and optimization needs of both process and discrete manufacturing companies through innovative technologies and expertise. Together with Commercial and Residential Solutions, Automation Solutions is one of the two core businesses around which the Emerson portfolio is organized for the future.

The organizations represented by the Automation Solutions business posted sales of $10.2 billion in fiscal 2015.

Steve Sonnenberg became chairman of Emerson Automation Solutions upon the group’s formation in May 2016. He served as an Emerson executive vice president and the Process Management business leader from 2008 to his 2016 chairman appointment.

Sonnenberg joined Emerson in 1979 as a marketing analyst with its Brooks Instrument business. His career progressed rapidly as he served in a number of marketing and general management positions in Germany, London and Asia Pacific. In 2000,  Sonnenberg was appointed president of Emerson Process Management Asia Pacific, and in 2002 he was appointed president of Emerson’s Rosemount business unit. During his tenure with Emerson, Sonnenberg has also been responsible for several Emerson acquisitions, including Rosemount TankRadar (formerly Saab Marine), Mobrey, Damcos and Metran.

Sonnenberg holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Georgia Tech and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Virginia. As president of Emerson Automation Solutions, Mike Train took the operational reins of the new organization in May 2016. He began his career with Emerson in 1991 as an international planner, then took on additional responsibilities in a number of executive posts that included serving as president of Emerson Japan and Korea, vice president of corporate planning, president of Emerson Process Management Asia Pacific, and president of Emerson’s Rosemount business.

Train was most recently president of global sales for Emerson Process Management, responsible for sales, service, support, and customer satisfaction for all products and services across five world-area organizations. In that role he was also part of the leadership team that drove strategic initiatives and investments for the entire business group.

Train earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from General Motors Institute and an MBA from the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. He currently serves on the management school’s advisory council and was a 2008 Eisenhower Fellowship recipient.