U.S. chair ready to roll: as he assumes the gavel and gets rolling as the U.S. chair, Ridge A. Braunschweig is capping off a remarkable service commitment thus far with FEI that began in 1983.

• Author: Heffes, Ellen M.
• Position: FEI Chairs

In the movie "Tin Cup," the character portrayed by Kevin Costner had exceptional talent at golf, yet with a big chance to rewrite the sorry script of his life, his "shoot-for-the-moon" decision turned sour. Don't expect to see anything like that scenario as Ridge A. Braunschweig assumes the role of FEI Chair for 2002-03. Braunschweig says he doesn't harbor a "tin cup" mentality -- in golf, and indeed, not in his work or life.

To the contrary, each step in his life, career and extensive involvement with FEI has been taken with what he dubs "the hallmarks of a recipe for success" that integrate such qualities as integrity, consistency, reasonableness, ethical conduct and a penchant for avoiding mistakes.

He credits the company he's grown his career with, since 1981 -- Orion Corp. of Grafton, Wis. -- for institutionalizing those qualities, providing a firm foundation for garnering longstanding, mutually beneficial relationships with customers, employees and suppliers. Orion is a small/mid-sized, privately held manufacturer of hydrodynamic bearings and precision-machined castings.

"I like to be aggressive, but calculated, as opposed to reckless aggressiveness," says Braunschweig. "Costner was more reckless than I would have been. If I conclude that there is sufficiently more of an advantage than a disadvantage, I'm going to go for it," he says, conceding that he applies this philosophy more to his golf game than other areas in his life. He considers himself "a reasonably conservative person, and one who tries to maximize the opportunity for success while minimizing the chance of failure." He plays to win, not to lose.

Braunschweig's elevation to chairman caps off a remarkable service history thus far with FEI. A member of the Milwaukee Chapter since 1983, having been introduced to the organization by the owner of Orion -- himself a member -- he joined in order to learn from and interact with the area's top senior financial executives.

By 1986, Braunschweig began assuming leadership roles, and has served -- or is serving -- in numerous ways, at the chapter, area and national levels, often in several spots concurrently. He's participated on or led committees on membership, program, professional development, career services, planning, nominating, budget and finance, ethics and eligibility, compensation and audit. At the national level, he's held titles of Director, Vice President and Vice Chairman; and he's served or is serving on the Executive...