Our team.
Susan Clapham founded Clapham Consulting in 1997 after spending a decade in industry. Clapham Consulting is located in the greater Charlotte, NC area and has dozens of global partners (we support clients in 12 languages).
Susan Clapham
Susan spent 10 years in industry (United Technologies, ABB & The Hon Company) where she held several operational leadership roles. During these years, Susan was trained/mentored by former Toyota & Danaher executives. She has spent the last 20+ years in consulting (including 4 years at McKinsey & Company) supporting businesses that aspire to capture results in several industries - building materials, manufacturing, healthcare, aerospace, energy, oil & gas, hospitality, mining, medical, software, retail, food, and entertainment. Susan has an industrial engineering degree from Lehigh University and a Master’s degree from Purdue University. Susan periodically teaches at UNC and Queens University and enjoys playing the piano, hiking, biking, taking walks, surfing, and traveling.
Email: susan@claphamconsulting.com
Michele Nichols
Michele has spent most of her career in industry in Engineering and Plant Management (General Motors, Toyota, and Textron). She was trained/mentored in Toyota Production System as part of the NUMMI startup in California and has spent the last 12 years in consulting, supporting the strategic improvement of sites and facilities, predominantly in the Southeast. Michele has an Industrial Technology degree from Purdue University. She has been a Faculty Member at South Piedmont Community College. Michele is an avid hiker and cook!
Email: michele@claphamconsulting.com
Robert has 3 parts to his career; he spent 6 years in the Army, 6 years at McKinsey & Company and 15 years in industry (Honeywell, Colfax, Boral Industries, and Amazon). He has expertise in supply chain, logistics, manufacturing, IT, maintenance and reliability, production planning, and scheduing. Robert has led operations, turnarounds, and merger integrations; he has worked in mining, building materials, a variety of manufacturing, chemicals, freight and logistics. Robert has a BS in Civil Engineering from the Virginia Military Institute and a MBA from Boston University. He’s an EMT, owns a handyman business, and enjoys boating and fishing.
Robert Gates
Dave Rucker
David Rucker spent 11 years in industry (GE and Raytheon) where he held operational leadership roles. During these years, Dave was mentored in Japan/USA by Shingijutsu, a consulting company of former Toyota executives; he was trained in lean by the same people that developed lean. He has spent the last 20+ years in consulting (including several years at TBM and Alix Partners) supporting businesses that are committed to operational change and improvement in many industries - manufacturing, aerospace, building materials. Dave has an industrial engineering degree from the University of Cincinnati and a MS in Mechanical Engineering from SMU. He’s an avid fisherman and enjoys cooking too.
Email: davidmarkrucker@gmail.com
Tracey Hawkins
Tracey began her career as an Air Force personnel officer for 8 years before becoming a human resources generalist/manager (Progress Energy, now Duke Energy and start-up organizations). She then joined a retained search firm where she specialized in manufacturing-related vacancies including plant leadership, supply chain, engineering, quality, HR, and sales. Her 15 years of recruiting experience have focused on several industries: manufacturing, logistics, building materials, energy, oil &gas, retail, and construction. Tracey has a BS in Industrial Relations from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill and a Master’s in Human Resource Management from Webster University. She gained her SPHR certification in 2001. Tracey, her two sons, and her husband are avid LSU fans (especially for baseball and football).