auto >>

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ate studies at Continental Automotive
Systems. He's been a materials analyst at
Lear Corporation since April 2015.
"The tremendous growth of the
automotive industry in Detroit has had
a huge impact on many young profes-
sionals in technical fields such as supply
chain management. The auto industry
is an addicting, fast-paced industry that
will keep young, Jewish talented profes-
sionals in the Detroit area to continue to
build and sustain the prominent com-
munity in which we live said Snyder,
who grew up in the Detroit area and
currently lives in Farmington Hills.
Jason Goldis, who
grew up in Bloomfield
Hills and graduated
from University of
Michigan's College of
Engineering, has been
a sales engineer at
Alexander Associates
Jason Goldis
for four years. He
recalled 2011, when
the industry was com-
ing out of the recession and muted opti-
mism existed in the light vehicle market
"The automotive market is a high-
energy complex and competitive indus-
try that presents a lot of opportunity for
young engineers; he said. "The endless
opportunity and continuous design
innovations keep me engaged in the
automotive market"
Goldis, a graduate of Hillel Day
School in Farmington Hills, notes that
though many young Jews have left
Detroit, the ones who have remained or
returned truly want to be here and want
to be engaged. That passion, he says, is
what sets the community apart and will
hopefully lure other native Detroiters
back home.
He suggests a great way to meet other
Jewish Detroiters in the auto industry
is through the MIBB, Michigan Israel
Business Bridge. One of his clients
includes an Israeli automotive sup-
plier, and his firm has been successful
in developing business for them with
North American customers
He is optimistic the region can build
on the jobs growth in the years ahead.
"Through the efforts of many busi-
ness leaders Downtown and in the sub-
urbs, people are working hard to make
Detroit a more attractive place to live/
work/play for all recent graduates, not
just engineers:' he said.

EXPERIENCED AUTO LEADERS
Neil Schloss is one of Jewish Detroit's
most prominent members of today's
automotive industry. He currently serves

as vice president and
treasurer for Ford
Motor Company, a
position he has held
since March 2007.
The San Diego-
native, who moved to
Michigan in 1990, is
Neil Schloss
credited with helping
to keep the auto-
maker with sufficient
cash reserves during the 2008 crisis and
positioned to thrive with record profits
in the years since. Schloss joined Ford
in 1982 as a financial analyst in the con-
troller's office at Ford Aerospace.
Schloss said the auto industry
is growing and rapidly evolving to
embrace changing technology The
industry is back, he remarked, and no
longer the old-curmudgeon industry
because of the key role technology is
playing. Schloss' financial fortitude can
be seen across the company's increas-
ingly international ambitions, from
South America to China.
"Ford has been a great place to work
— challenging to be sure, but also very
rewarding. Ford has also been a great
place to work as an observant Jew —
always respectful of diversity and the
need for work/life balance'
Outside of work, Schloss enjoys
spending time with family and friends.
He supports youth movements and out-
reach programs including B'nei Akiva
and NCSY, Aish Detroit, the Jewish
Resource Center in Ann Arbor, and
finds great satisfaction from his involve-
ment with Kids Kicking Cancer.
The father of two daughters — the
oldest went to Hillel and Frankel
Jewish Academy and the youngest to
Akiva Hebrew Day School and now
FJA — Schloss is affiliated with West
Bloomfield's Ohel Moed of Shomrey
Emunah.
"Our sense of community and family
should be a selling point, in addition to
the very affordable cost of living [espe-
cially compared with other bigger com-
munities]:' he said.
Back in the early 1990s, Belarus-born
Bo Shulkin moved to Detroit. He was in
his early 20s and lived in the city, study-
ing applied mathematics and computer
science at Wayne State University before
getting a master's in mathematics and a
doctorate in applied statistics.
Like all automotive executives inter-
viewed, Shulkin is surprised to have
stayed in Detroit as long as he has. "I
never ever thought I'd be living in the
Detroit area today and working in the
automotive industry"

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28 October 8 2015

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