Who is a good leader? Someone who inspired the team to push the limits. Who is a good tech leader? Someone who takes the charge to be updated with the latest technical knowledge and strategizes to incorporate it, easing the team's work and increasing productivity. While this might be common knowledge, it is easier said than done. Doing exemplary work in transforming the industry of material, production, and general automotive component testing, we interviewed Michelle Taylor, Director of Marketing at NSI-MI Technologies, to know more about the industry, the company, and its innovation.

Leading Technology Development for Advanced Engineering Solutions

AMETEK NSI-MI, doing business as NSI-MI Technologies, is a company deeply embedded in developing radiated RF and microwave measurement solutions. The company delivers precision test systems and products to customers operating in the areas of aerospace, satellites, defense, vehicle, wireless, and EMC. NSI-MI is the preferred global supplier of antenna, RF, and microwave testing equipment from world-class in-house testing facilities to delivering industry-leading turnkey systems.

Its expansive team of renowned technical experts is dedicated to delivering high-quality engineering solutions and advanced products for a wide range of technical applications where precise measurement, motion control, and data acquisition are required. The company's vast line of products also allows it to offer solutions for production lines or general automated component testing.

NSI-MI predominately manufactures equipment to test and measure antenna characteristics. The last 20 years of technological advancements in satellite communications, automated vehicles, defense measures, Internet of Things (IoT), and wireless devices continuously challenge the industry to create instrumentation that has never been developed before. Its products test and measure satellite payloads, automated manufacturing, 5G technology, target and motion simulation, GPS, radio (satellite and AM/FM), wireless medical hardware, radar, and, in general, any antenna with frequencies falling within the megahertz to terahertz spectrum.

Being an Ace Frontrunner in the Tech Industry

Michelle Taylor is the Director of Marketing, responsible for all marketing programs and brand management. She joined NSI-MI Technologies in 2010 with an extensive set of business skills which include 20 years of administration and marketing experience in an engineering environment.

Michelle has a Bachelor of Science from Georgia State University with a major in sound engineering. She is currently the President of the Antenna Measurement Techniques Association (AMTA), an international non-profit organization dedicated to the development, application, and dissemination of advanced antenna, radar signature, and related measurement technologies. Michelle is also a member of the American Marketing Association (AMA).

The Journey to Becoming a Successful Tech Leader

Michelle's career choices have always steered towards engineering. "Engineers use science, technology, and math to solve worldwide problems. We can see engineering everywhere in the world around us, improving the ways we work, travel, communicate, stay healthy, and entertain," said Michelle.

In her experience, engineers tend to have distinct personalities. They tend to be investigative individuals, which means they are intellectual, introspective, and inquisitive. They are curious, methodical, rational, analytical, and logical. As a result, knowledge has been the primary key to Michelle's success as a leader. Listening and learning from her peers, colleagues, and customers, as well as self-educating, is what shaped her personal journey to leadership.

Apart from engineering, she also focused on communication. From the beginning of her career, she realized it was critical to learn how effectively communicate. Michelle believes that clear communication is of the utmost importance to ensure that her engineer peers can provide the technical aspects as well as introduce and market the company's products and offerings effectively.

Michelle explained how her volunteer positions within the industry (AMTA) and professional career (AMA) have contributed to her success as a leader. Michelle held several positions on the AMTA Board of Directors since 2014, ultimately reaching the goal of President. As these positions are voted upon by the membership, achieving this level shows that she has become an accomplished professional in her field. Her membership with the AMA is predominately to continue to keep up with changes in the marketing field. It also gives Michelle a forum to discuss, share, and learn with like-minded colleagues.

Navigating Through Industry Challenges

Industry knowledge has been Michelle's primary challenge. According to her, it was initially difficult to effectively lead the marketing department in such an advanced engineering field. During the interview, she told us that mathematics and physics are not her strong points, therefore finding a way to learn specific engineering aspects can be sometimes painstaking. However, finding the right avenues to learn, as she did, can make this challenge into a success story.

Starting the Marketing Department from the ground up at NSI-MI was the most challenging phase of her career. "Prior to my transition to the Marketing Department, the company outsourced most Marcom materials. Additionally, the employees coordinating marketing left the company. Over time, I carefully added dedicated team members, rarely outsourced, and developed a brand strategy that matches our overall business strategy." said Michelle.

She faced many issues. Some of them were the need to fully understand the technology, accepting the position in AMTA Board of Directors, and learning how to effectively market in a niche industry. Therefore, Michelle needed to learn not one, but two companies that engaged in a highly educated field and, at the same time, needed to change the mindset of the company and its views on marketing.

Attributes that Shape a Leader

According to Michelle, these are the essential attributes that every tech leader should have.

• Encouraging brainstorming and working in a team environment: She asserts that communication is a two-way street, and collecting all ideas — good, bad, or indifferent — can all eventually lead to telling the company's story.
• She stresses the fact that listening to every member of the team and motivating them to be creative with their ideas is important.
• Being confident and persevering with your integrity and morals: She firmly believes in the phrase, "Never let them see you sweat."
• Being self-aware: Michelle hasn't met anyone on this planet that is perfect. So, embracing both shortfalls, as well as accomplishments, will help a leader continue to grow as a professional and as a human being.
• Being down to earth: She finds it important to learn from the peers and industry colleagues, reading articles, journals, attending seminars and webinars, etc.
• Being true to yourself: She asserts that if a leader is trying to be someone they are not, that person will not gain confidence, trust, or respect from others.

Understanding Audience is Crucial for Innovation

When asked about how the company innovates its products and services, Michelle said that there are several critical factors to consider when developing a new product or solution.

"Understanding both existing and potential customers is more than half the battle for marketing in a niche industry like RF and microwave measurements," said Michelle.

She further adds that knowing customers, knowing the market, and being able to predict future needs is critical in a technology-driven industry. Although her organization does fulfill a unique niche, it is also important for her to know her competitors and, more importantly, keep ahead of them, regardless of how many there are.

Embracing the World's Technological Shift

"In both my company's industry and segment within the company, technology is changing moment by moment," said Michelle when asked how disruptive technologies are impacting the business world. The upsurge in big data applications is a direct consequence of the drastic boom in information technology, as well as the growing number of internet-connected devices, called the Internet of Things (IoT).

To embrace the developing technologies, Michelle finds herself reading journals and white papers on a number of topics, from analytics and SEO to drones and artificial intelligence. Due to the company's vast array of customers, it is heavily invested in helping shape the vision of artificial intelligence, IoT, automation, big data, machine learning, and the like. According to her, almost every device these days has some sort of antenna involved. This means that from testing factory automation, satellite communications, measuring interference of WiFi in a medical device, using robots within its own systems, to working with customers to figure out how to save, compute, and solve big data issues, NSI-MI Technologies is right in the thick of it.

What Does the Crystal Ball Say?

Talking about the company's future, Michelle says: "With our recent acquisition by AMETEK, I feel we have been given an accelerated pass to new insights, developing research, and new technologies as we merge our resources with one of the largest companies in the world driving engineering technology." She reiterates the fact that communication is a key to success and leadership.

Advice From One Leader to Another

In her own words: "Leadership means developing your own voice. It means remaining confident in your decisions in both your personal and professional life. Do not be afraid to make mistakes. As a human, this is inevitable. You can create your own opportunities wherever your career path leads you, but you can't be a leader unless you believe in yourself."