Inside Track: CEO navigates his firm's sale to Trimble

Ron Konezny , who was CEO of Minnetonka-based PeopleNet before it was acquired by California-based Trimble last year, must have made an impression.

Konezny, 43, a founder of PeopleNet in 1994, has been named general manager of Trimble's worldwide transportation and logistics division, which will be based in Minnetonka at the old PeopleNet headquarters. And Konezny plans to add about 100 people locally by 2015 to meet growth expectations. Trimble owned a couple of smaller, related businesses, and Konezny is expanding the GPS-based operation.

"The big theme is that the worldwide transportation and logistics division of Trimble is headquartered in Minnesota, with offices in Europe and India," Konezny said.

"We are expanding to Mexico and China. We have plans to hire 30 additional people in Minnetonka this year."

Konezny's operation is part of big Trimble's mobile solutions division.

PeopleNet focuses on Internet-based and inboard computing and mobile communications systems for about 200,000 trucks and more than 1,500 fleets globally.

Trimble, which is approaching $2 billion in revenue, offers wireless technology to mobile workers in construction, agriculture, fleet and public safety.

Element, which has been in business since 2007, is run by Michael O'Shaughnessy, a onetime partner of convicted businessman Tom Petters and former CEO of Polaroid when it was part of the Petters business empire.

The plant will initially employee 100 workers with room for expansion. Element Electronics products are available at Target, Wal-Mart and Costco and on QVC and online locations.

O'Shaughnessy's Petters days aren't fully behind him, though. He remains the subject of a $7.3 million clawback lawsuit through the Petters corporate bankruptcy for bonuses and special payments he received from Petters Cos. Inc. between 2005 and 2008.

DAVID PHELPS

Bob Ryan, the retired chief financial officer of Medtronic, was reminiscing the other day about a career that still has him sitting on the boards of Citigroup and Stanley Black & Decker. Ryan, 68, an electrical engineer and Harvard MBA, was with Medtronic from 1993 until his retirement in 2005.

"Financial people are trained to be analytical and they have the numbers and they must understand the whole company," Ryan said. "There's pressure from government and pressure from the CEO and the board, and you have to get things done. And we had issues like Sarbanes-Oxley reform and the government didn't give you much guidance and my colleagues -- other financial people -- were of tremendous help [in shaping ideas and comparing practices]."

The 400-strong Twin Cities chapter, which meets monthly, holds annual conferences and also has heard from a U.S. vice president, an economist waxing on the economic value of quality preschool education, a chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and a bunch of CEOs, senators, celebrities and authors. The January meeting was at 3M, which also boasted the first FEI Twin Cities chapter president in 1937.

Phil Soran, 55, will retire soon from Dell Compellent, a year after his publicly held Compellent Technologies of Eden Prairie was acquired by huge Dell for about $800 million. Soran told associates of his plans at a company conference in London a few days ago. Soran, a onetime high school math teacher, started data-storage firm Compellent in a basement in 2002 with old tech hombres John Guider and Larry Aszmann.

The Sabes Jewish Community Center on Feb. 2 will host an evening about innovation, venture capital and the growing relationship between Minnesota and Israeli technology companies. The evening also will feature the Minnesota premiere of "Something Ventured," about the impact of California's Silicon Valley. It's been described as a "genuine love story about capitalism."

Local financiers and business folks will be on hand. Tickets and information at www.sabesjcc.org or 952-381-3499.