Making things happen, taking risks and willing to make sacrifices are just a few words, which describe Diane M. Artman, the Global Manager of Engine Oil Technology at the Lubrizol Corporation headquartered in Wickliffe, Ohio. William G. Bares, CEO of the Lubrizol Corporation says,
"Diane has had a wide range of experience at Lubrizol. She has made a large contribution in each position. Most recently, her leadership and her keen technical skills have been instrumental in developing our new engine oil additive products. She's a winner."
Diane earned a B. S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati where she graduated Magna Cum Laude. Diane started her career at Harshaw/Filtrol Partnership as a process engineer where she developed process improvements for manufacturing. After a year, Diane joined Lubrizol as a process engineer for the R&D pilot plant. One highlight of Diane's career as a process engineer was the development of computer models based on kinetics of an alkylation process. This process increased capacity 50%, saved $250,000 in raw materials, and eliminated a capital investment projected at $800,000. While working full time in the pilot plant, she earned her MBA from Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio. After four years in the pilot plant, Diane was promoted to program manager in automatic transmission fluids (ATFs). Diane managed a $6 million testing budget to obtain customer approvals for ATFs. To utilize the skills from her MBA, she became an ATF product manager. She developed, coordinated, and implemented the business plan, which contained the key strategies for profit/market share goals. She executed a successful product launch with pricing strategies and promotional information. In 1995 Diane moved into the Heavy Duty Diesel Segment as a commercial manager of the Americas. She led the commercial development for the current Heavy Duty Diesel category specification CH-4. With the upgrade to CH-4, market share grew ~8 points.
"Diane has served as commercial manager for two of our most important business areas. In each case, she significantly strengthened our business by creating competitive advantage, resulting in profitable business growth. Her contribution has been huge; I wish we had more people with these skills!"
Steve Kirk, Vice President, Sales and marketing
In her current position as Global Manager of Engine Oil Technology, Diane is responsible for 15 direct reports: 11 in the United States, 3 in England, and 1 in Japan. She is responsible for the product development and research for engine oil products. To accomplish this, she manages a budget over $20 million. Stephen DiBiase, Vice President, Research, Development and Engineering, said this about Diane's attributes,
"Among Diane's many attributes is her high degree of personal accountability and skillfulness at being both technically credible and commercially savvy. Diane understands, as one of Lubrizol's key technical leaders, that increasing shareholder value requires both technical and commercial success. We're fortunate to have someone of Diane's caliber on our team."
Diane defines success in two ways,
"At life, you are successful when your children say you are a 'great mom' and look up to you. In business, I feel successful when I see people grow through their assignments, contribute to the organization's success, and reach their potential. I really enjoy taking the undeveloped talent and nurturing it."
Diane likes to make things happen for her group. She creates opportunities for everyone including oversea assignments, project challenges, and providing recognition.
Karen Allen, program manager at Lubrizol had this to say about Diane,
"Diane has helped Lubrizol succeed by taking a personal interest in other outstanding achievers and helping them achieve their potential. She works behind the scenes to make things happen for these 'rising stars.' She has definitely helped me and I consider her my first true mentor. We need more people like Diane at Lubrizol - people who make it easier for others to be effective."
Diane attributes her success to having her family behind her 100%. Diane has been married to Dick for 19 years and has two children, Alex 12 and Chelsea 9. Dick said this about his wife,
"Juggling career, family and personal time is not easy! Sometimes sacrifices have to be made and it is usually Diane that has to make them but success seldom comes without sacrifice. To make this work we make it a team effort and while we don't see each other as much as we might like, we make our time together special. While we are apart I know that she is working hard and meeting her responsibilities. I am very proud of what she has accomplished and always enjoy saying 'That's my wife!'"
Balancing work and family can be challenging. Diane says she keeps the balance by maintaining her priorities, staying organized, and having excellent home support. It takes teamwork to overcome any challenge. Her husband assists with the housework and does all the cooking. He also runs the home-based therapy program for their special needs daughter. Family time is important to Diane and they enjoy beach vacations. Diane also enjoys watching NASCAR racing, especially her favorite driver, Bobby Labonte. Diane has indulged in racing classes as she has the need for speed!
Her advice to women thinking about science careers is to GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE. The horizon is wide open. Look for opportunities to grow, take on challenging assignments, develop new skills beyond the technical, and volunteer for opportunities for customer interaction or international travel.
Diane lives by these simple fundamentals: Do what you say and walk your talk. Make things happen for people. People need to see you for who you are.
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