UM College of Business to Host OrePac CEO For Executive Lecture Series
April 10, 2023
MISSOULA – Brad Hart, CEO and president of OrePac Building Products, will present the next installment of the Gilkey Executive Lecture Series hosted by the University of Montana College of Business.
This in-person event at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 20, in Gallagher Business Building Room 106 is free and open to the public. Dr. Justin Angle, a UM marketing professor, will moderate the talk, which will center around business leadership and management.
OrePac Building Products is a family owned building materials distributor headquartered in Wilsonville, Oregon. OrePac was founded over 40 years ago by Glenn Hart and is now headed by Brad Hart. OrePac operates 10 distribution centers throughout the West, employing about 900 people and a 120-truck fleet to service customers. Products and services range from moldings, pre-hung interior and exterior doors, house wrap, decking, siding and trim, along with other specialty building materials.
Hart graduated from UM with a degree in business. Over the years, he has continued his education through various elective programs, studying leadership, management styles, sales, finance and production efficiencies. He is a diligent reader and is constantly striving to be the best leader possible.
After graduating from college, Hart spent three years working in the resort industry and then another three years working for other similar building material companies. Then, with a family philosophy of “working your way up”, he entered the family business as a salesman. After a few years, he was promoted to sales manager, general manager, vice president of sales and marketing, senior vice president of operations and, ultimately, president and CEO.
Outside OrePac, Hart serves on the UM College of Business Advisory Board, as well as the board of the AAA Auto Club. He also has worked with and supported many organizations in the Lake Oswego, Wilsonville and Portland communities.
Hart and his wife, Michele, live in Lake Oswego, Oregon, and have three boys. The eldest is a graduate of the University of Virginia Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy and is working in the Washington, D.C., legislative sector. Their second son is a senior studying hospitality management in college, and their youngest is a sophomore majoring in business supply chain and logistics while playing NCAA Division I lacrosse. Hart and his family are avid outdoor enthusiasts who enjoy snow and water skiing, biking, tennis and occasionally golf.
About the Gilkey Lecture Series
The Gilkey Executive Lecture Series was established by Harold and Priscilla Gilkey in 2004 to enrich business education at UM by providing students, faculty and the community members with direct access to business leaders.
Gilkey lecturers address issues across marketing, management, finance, ethics and leadership. In addition to leading classroom lectures and discussion, speakers present a lecture at a public forum on a topic of their choice and are invited to meet with graduate students and campus and community leaders.
Both Harold and Priscilla acknowledge the powerful impact of mentors and role models on their own professional and personal achievements.
Harold Gilkey is a 1962 graduate of UM and holds an MBA from the University of Southern California. He is retired as chairman and CEO of Sterling Financial Corp. Priscilla Gilkey is a 1962 UM graduate. She is retired as vice president of community relations for Empire Health Services, a multi-hospital system in Spokane, Washington.
The University of Montana is the flagship university of the state. The College of Business at UM is nationally renowned and has been named the top business school in the Big Sky Conference by U.S. News and World Report for seven consecutive years.