Poland native, now international CEO, to speak at commencement

POLAND

Eric Spiegel is the president and CEO of Siemens USA, one of the country’s largest corporations.

He earned his undergraduate degree from Harvard University, and his MBA from Dartmouth College.

His career took him to places such as California and Tokyo before he landed at his current position as head of the company that reported $22.2 billion in revenue last year.

His roots, however, are here in Poland, and he attributes much of his success to what he learned growing up in the Mahoning Valley. He returns this weekend to deliver the commencement speech Sunday at Poland Seminary High School, from which he graduated in 1976.

“Both of my grandfathers worked in the mills. My Dad was kind of a self-made guy,” Spiegel said. “I really took away this ethic that it’s going to take hard work to be successful.”

Spiegel, who now lives in McLean, Va., started his journey on Frontier Drive, after his parents moved from the East Side of Youngstown to Poland.

“I spent my whole life until I was 18 in Poland,” he said.

“It was a great place to grow up. I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” he said.

Read more of his story, and some of what he plans to tell the grads in Saturday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.