Millennium Magazine_8th Ed

109 Millennium - A Marquis Who’s Who Magazine ENERGY, ENGINEERING AND MANUFACTURING T he most significant role model in the late Robert J. Saldich’s life was his legendary professor of manufacturing at Harvard Business School, General Georges Doriot, for whom he was a research assistant after receiving his MBA degree. To prepare for his career, Mr. Saldich pursued a formal education at Rice University, where he received a BSChemE in 1956. After accruing experience in the field, he enrolled at Harvard University, obtaining an MBA in 1961. At the inception of his career in 1956, Mr. Saldich served Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Co. as a manufacturing manager. After Harvard, he was hired as assistant to the president of Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corp. from 1962 to 1964. In 1964, Mr. Saldich joined Raychem Corporation as a manager of finance and personnel. In 1966, he was sent to Europe, where he started the beginning of the worldwide expansion of Raychem into a Fortune 500 materials science company, where the international operations became more than 50% of their business and grew Raychem into the Fortune 200 category. He returned to Menlo Park in 1971 as head of the Thermofit Division until 1976, when he was elevated to head of three divisions until 1983: Energy, Telecom and Chemelex. He worked within the Office of the President of Raychem, and from 1987 to 1988, he was president of RayNet Corp. He then excelled as senior vice president of the Energy Division of Raychem. In 1990, he succeeded the founder of Raychem as chief executive officer, retiring in 1995. Mr. Saldich cites serving as national chairman of the American Electronics Association and chairman of the Commonwealth Club of California as crowning achievements. Additionally, he sat on the visiting committee of the Harvard Business School for two terms, and was on the advisory board of the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University and advisory committee of California Polytechnic University. Mr. Saldich passed away in 2017 and is survived by his wife, Virginia, with whom he shared 34 years of marriage. He is also survived by his son Alan, four stepchildren who adored him, and 12 grandchildren. ROBERT JOSEPH SALDICH CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, PRESIDENT Raychem Corporation Palo Alto, CA