Dean Harlow, MBA '89
Dean Harlow is a transformational CEO and Board Director that has global leadership experience breaking into new markets, driving company growth and leading technology- enabled innovation across the automotive, industrial and technology sectors. Dean is the Managing Director of Formula Advisors providing strategic consulting services and interim management to private equity firms, venture capital firms, startups and automotive suppliers. He has significant experience with both manufacturing companies and professional services firms ranging from startups to multinational companies such as General Motors.
Most recently, Dean was Executive Vice President of Operations for Canoo, an Electric Vehicle startup, where he was responsible for Manufacturing, Quality, Purchasing & Supply Chain, Program Management, Product Planning, Business Systems and Real Estate. Prior to joining Canoo, Dean was Chief Restructuring Officer and Senior Vice President of Engineering for Delphi Technologies, a $4.5 billion global automotive supplier of electronics, software, electric vehicle components and powertrain systems (until acquired by BorgWarner). Before Delphi, he served as CEO of Lapeer Plating + Plastics (LP+P) and as President and CEO of Ricardo, Inc. leading successful turnarounds at both. Earlier in his career, Dean held several senior executive positions at General Motors including the startup of General Motors China where he served as a member of the Asia Pacific Strategy Board, GM China Vice President of New Business Development and CTO. He spent over 20 years at GM in a variety of capacities including engineering, finance, planning, corporate business development, government relations and eCommerce.
In addition to servicing on the Alumni Board of Governors, Dean serves on the Boards of Electronic Caregiver (ECG), a digital healthcare company that is #968 on the 2023 Inc. 5000, and Hercules Electric Mobility, focused on electrifying the marine market.
Dean holds an MBA from the University of Michigan and a BS in Electrical Engineering from Kettering University (formerly GMI). During his time at Ross, he was co-Founder of the Automotive Industry Club. Dean lives in West Bloomfield, MI with his wife, Laurie, and two children, Pierce (17) and Olivia (14), both of whom hope to attend Michigan.