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Manufacturer & Business Association – Business Magazine (June 2022)

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Family Business CEOs to Watch 2022

Colleen Moore Mezler
Second generation
President and CEO
Moore Research Services Inc., Erie, Pa.

Colleen Moore Mezler has been with Moore Research Services Inc., a marketing research firm, since she joined her mother in 1987. Mezler has significant experience in both qualitative and quantitative research. Moore Research serves a variety of organizations throughout the United States and globally, from small start-up companies to Fortune 500 corporations. Mezler is a past chairman of the Insights Association, which promotes the role of intelligence, analytics and insights in driving business impact. She is certified by the association as an expert in market research. She has received many honors from the association, including the Lifetime Achievement Award and the Distinguished Service Award. She has also been honored by ATHENA International, a nonprofit organization dedicated to building a global pipeline of women leaders. She has served on the ATHENA International board of directors. In addition, she has received recognition for service to her local business community.

“Colleen took a small, local data collection company started by her mom in 1969 and turned it into a full market research company that completes studies all over the world.,” says her husband, Frank Mezler, vice president of Moore ­Research.

“Colleen loves her company and the workers she employs. They know she has an open-door policy, and they can see her about any issues they may have. She invests in her employees by encouraging future growth opportunities and pays for any training to help them succeed. She invests in them outside of the company by offering full medical health care coverage, with no employee contribution, and offers a company-sponsored IRA program.

“Colleen encourages employee input on the jobs and the processes performed because she realizes that she doesn’t know it all and that the employee who performs these actions may have important insight.

“Lastly, Colleen frequently uses the term ‘team’ or ‘family’ in meetings or gatherings because that’s what they are to her — more than just employees, but individuals she really cares for and is grateful for the work they do to make Moore Research successful.”

“My mother founded Moore Research in 1969 with a card table and a file cabinet and couldn’t have imagined the success we would achieve in our 50+ years,” Colleen Mezler says. “Our biggest secret to success has been to ability to adapt, grow and change while staying true to our mission, which is to help clients make reliable business decisions.  We take pride in the fact that our family name is on every project that we do.”

Jana Goodrich
Second generation (married-in)
President and CEO
Seaway Manufacturing, Erie, Pa.

Prior to becoming president and CEO of Seaway Manufacturing, Jana Goodrich served as vice president. In that role, she had responsibility for several key areas, including operations, engineering, information technology, administration, sales, marketing and retail sales. Seaway, founded in 1959, specializes in windows, doors and sunrooms. The company began by making custom aluminum storm doors and windows and then developed a diverse line of vinyl and aluminum products. Before joining Seaway, Goodrich earned numerous honors in each of her professional ventures. She worked as a territory marketing representative for Xerox and as a systems engineer for IBM. She left IBM to raise a family and complete her graduate education. In 1994, she founded and served as president of Executive Education Services, a management consulting firm, which she ran for many years. The firm provided instruction and consulting for regional organizations, including law firms, service organizations, the Manufacturer and Business Association, SUNY Fredonia, Mercyhurst College, several campuses of Penn State University and General Electric. Shortly after completing her MBA, Goodrich accepted a full-time position as a college professor at Penn State Erie, the Behrend College, teaching management and marketing. During her tenure at Penn State Behrend, she also worked with the School of Engineering as part of a small team that developed a product development and realization course and the interdisciplinary business and engineering studies program. In addition, Goodrich directed several initiatives in the Sam & Irene Black School of Business. Goodrich is a member of the City of Erie Mayor’s Advisory Council. She serves as chairman of the Penn State Behrend Sam & Irene Black School of Business advisory board and chairman of the Manufacturer and Business Association board of directors. She is a past member of several advisory boards for national organizations associated with the fenestration industry, including the executive boards of both the National Glass Association and the National Sunroom Association as well as the Window and Door Dealers Alliance.

“Jana has worked tirelessly over her many years at Seaway to continue to grow the company while navigating the turbulence of the economic and building industry downturns in 2009-10,” says her son, Patrick Goodrich, Seaway’s chief operating officer. “She has worked daily in all areas of the business (manufacturing as well as retail side) to empower team members to be the best that they can be for themselves and to support the company.

“She stresses a strong work/life balance, ensuring that employees see their own personal value in addition to what they bring to the business and that they focus on the needs of their families first and foremost, knowing their job is secure. She was also pivotal in the charting us through the daily shifting landscape of the COVID pandemic and its impact on the business, working strongly with our partners in government to reduce our shutdowns and retain 100% of our employees.”

“Building a family business is incredibly rewarding, allowing the family to control the company’s culture while creating a unified path for future success.” Jana Goodrich says. 

“Employees’ and customers’ direct access to the ownership creates an enduring and rewarding culture of mutual engagement and commitment, competitive advantage and personal/professional fulfillment.

“While each generation can modify the vision, the commitment, trust and respect cultivated in a strong and healthy family provide flexibility, stability and dedication of each participant for the benefit of all in the ‘company family,’ including employees and customers.

“Children raised in a family business learn what technical and professional/managerial skills are needed to succeed and witness the sacrifices, challenges and value of building enduring personal and professional relationships built on respect and mutual benefit. There are few greater joys than watching your child succeed professionally, especially when they expertly and faithfully carry on what the family has devoted lifetimes to building.”

Philip Katen
Second generation
President and General Manager
Plastikos Inc., Erie, Pa.

Philip Katen and his brother, Ryan, lead Plastikos, Micro Mold and Plastikos Medical, their family’s advanced medical injection molding and mold-making companies. Philip Katen was previously a senior consultant at Deloitte. He and his management team have implemented strategies he learned through his prior experience as a consultant to much larger companies. Philip and Ryan Katen founded Plastikos Medical in early March 2019, on Plastikos’ 30th anniversary, and completed construction on Plastikos Medical’s advanced medical molding facility in August 2019. The new facility quickly reached full capacity, and a major expansion recently was completed. Katen holds an MBA from Duke University and a B.S. degree in industrial engineering and economics from Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering.

“Philip chose to grow the business rather than maintaining the already successful business that was at hand,” says John Williams, a molding manager at Plastikos. “This really invigorated the team and made Plastikos a more attractive place to work for new candidates and potential new customers.

“Philip is a hands-on leader, without micromanaging. It is commonplace to find Philip on the manufacturing floor helping the team. He makes everyone feel important and part of the larger team regardless of their role. Philip empowers the department managers around him and ensures we stay focused on the positive.”

“Phil, along with the ownership group, is always five steps ahead with a clear vision of the future of the business. Property for Plastikos Medical was purchased in the same business park as Plastikos years before construction began, as he saw our growth in the medical industry,” says Danielle Bentley, a molding manager at Plastikos Medical. “He is the first one in and the last to leave as well as working on the weekends and most holidays. His hard work is evident through Plastikos’ continued success and an inspiration to the team.”

“Phil always has his pulse on the business and surprises me with how well he’s in tune with even small details,” says Jesse Barber, corporate tooling project manager at Plastikos. “He’s sharp and holds high expectations for his team, which drives engagement, accountability and efficiency in the organization. Knowing he has your back motivates the team to be their best.

“Phil was instrumental in the strategic direction of the company about a decade ago, leading Plastikos into the medical industry, diversifying our business portfolio, leading to several expansions during that time,” Barber says. “Under Phil’s leadership, Plastikos took a very targeted approach to developing new business partners and has formed great relationships with a select group of customer and supplier partners. Thanks to the diversification and alignment with key partners, Plastikos continued to grow our team and business throughout the pandemic, when other businesses were struggling. That growth trend continues today.”

“I grew up in and around our family businesses, working from a young age, initially tasked with general cleaning duties, cutting the grass and weeding, and performing other basic, entry-level tasks,” Katen says. “Throughout my childhood, our family businesses were always a core topic around the family dinner table each evening.

“When I returned to Erie to join our family businesses, I did so knowing that I could bring my talents and abilities, my training and education, strategy and operations experience, and my personal love and passion for our companies to enable our team to attain ever higher levels of success.

“I have seen the positive impact that our family businesses have had on my family, in the lives of all of the individuals on our team and their families, on our suppliers and business partners, as well as on our local community and region.

“I consider myself so fortunate and blessed to have grown up in a family business that ultimately afforded me the opportunities to grow in my career, to provide financial security and career advancement to the members of our team, to coach and mentor key leaders on our team and enabled me to give back to a number of organizations.”

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