Steiner Electric Co. (Chicago): John Burke was appointed president and COO, effective Jan. 23. He will assume day-to-day leadership of the company from Rick Kerman, who will remain in the role of chairman and CEO. Kerman joined the company full time in 1979 as the third generation of the original family business by his grandfather George Steiner in 1916.
Burke has an extensive background in the electrical distribution industry. Most recently he was president and CEO of supplyFORCE, where he was instrumental in the transformation of the company and overall sales growth. Prior to joining supplyFORCE, Burke held positions as president and COO of Kirby Risk Electrical Supply; COO at SourceAlliance; Southeast Division president of Rexel, SA; VP, general manager of EESCO Division of WESCO International; and numerous leadership positions with GE in the areas of government contracting, sourcing and materials management in the Power Systems and Electrical Distribution business.
In addition to Burke’s accomplished business record, he has also served on numerous advisory boards for electrical manufacturers, the NAED Board of Directors, the IDEA Board of Directors, the NAED Education and Research Foundation Board of Directors, the EDGE Global Supply Board of Directors and an Advisory Board for the school of Industrial Distribution at Purdue University.
“We are thrilled to announce a president and COO with one of the best reputations in the industry,” said Rick Kerman, Steiner Electric’s chairman and CEO. “John and I have known each other for over 25 years within the electrical industry as well as with Affiliated Distributor. His experience and skills will have a tremendous impact on Steiner as we continue to expand and improve our ability to be the preferred choice for our customers and the suppliers we represent.”