Submitted June 2017

Name: Kyle Hart

Title: Assoc. Research Scientist

Company: The Dow Chemical Company

Age: 29

Social media sites commonly used: Twitter @KyleHartPhD

Education: BSc in Chemistry from Mercyhurst University (Erie, PA) with minors in Computational Chemistry and Mathematics, and a PhD in Materials Science and Engineering from Pennsylvania State University (University Park, PA).

Tell us about your family: My incredible wife, Andréia, and I just had our first son, Benjamin.

What was your first plastics job and why were you interested in the industry?: My current job is my first plastics job, polyethylene product R&D in the Packaging and Specialty Plastics group at Dow Chemical. The plastics industry interested me because after studying materials science and polymer physics in grad school, I was eager to use my fundamental knowledge to create tangible products with the potential for profound societal impact toward sustainability. Plastics was a great fit. Being able to devote myself toward the development of molecular structures in plastic packaging that improves the recyclability, reduces the amount of waste generated, and is more energy efficient has been a rewarding experience.

Greatest achievement? Hopefully I’m just getting started. The things I am proud of so far are defending my Ph.D. at 25 years old, and more recently being a key researcher in the development and launching an innovative polyolefin packaging resin that has sold millions of pounds already. Most importantly is the family my wife and I are creating with our son.

Biggest failure and what it taught you? Marcus Aurelius famously said, “The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.” What this means to me is that in all failures, big or small, there is opportunity – opportunity to grow, to learn, to be better. Failure has taught me that you do not control what happens, but you can control how you respond. If you have good intentions coupled with this mindset, failures don’t exist. For example,

 What is your current challenge at work? My current challenge is leading a global polyethylene technical development project team. This requires effective communication and collaboration with many experts, such as in materials science, catalysis, manufacturing, marketing, supply chain, sales, value chain, technical service, senior leadership, and business stakeholders. Alignment of such a team can only be accomplished with clear, concise, and comprehensive information, all while competing in the fast-paced plastics industry. I strive to do this while focusing on engaging and inspiring people around me to look at problems differently, see opportunity in challenges, and achieve our goals.

What emerging technology or market most interests you? There are many, but the one that I think has huge potential is the combination of the Internet of things (IoT) and data science. With the continued implementation of the IoT, scientists and engineers will have access to incredible amounts of information. As a result of this flood of high quality data, data scientists will be able to model complex relationships that haven’t been considered. This will facilitate product innovations, efficiencies, and development opportunities like never before.

What about the plastics industry surprises you? The level of scientific innovation that continues to occur in this industry. From the outside it may seem as though plastics is an old and stale technology – this is not true. For even the simplest polymer chemical structure, polyolefins, we have a long way to go before we understand all of the governing physical principles.

What is the best advice you have ever received? My father used to tell me to always be a craftsman. It didn’t matter if you are writing and article, giving a presentation, or designing an experiment, you should have pride in your work – be a craftsman.

 What advice would you give to a person considering a career in the plastics industry? As the 1967 hit film The Graduate said, “There’s a great future in plastics. Think about it. Will you think about it?” The potential of your work to impact people all over the world is extraordinary in the plastics industry. The next great innovation in sustainable plastics, energy efficiency, the circular plastics economy or recyclability could impact literally billions of people.

If you were CEO of a company what would you do first? Listen. The first thing I would do is listen. In my opinion, the responsibility of the CEO is two-fold, cultivating the culture within the company, and setting the vision of the business. To do both of these effectively, the CEO needs to listen to many people, the employees, the board, the C-suite, and the industry. Only then can you effectively lead your company through sustained and deliberate action.

Who is your mentor, or someone you look up to? I firmly believe that you can learn something from everyone. I have learned work ethic and grit from my parents, to be more empathetic from my wife, to do high-quality science from my research professors, how to turn innovation into business from leaders in Dow, and how to be an effective leader from some of my favorite authors (Ben Franklin, Tim Ferris, Ryan Holiday, and many others).

What job do you really want to have in the future? In any future job I have, I want it to have the following characteristics: It should allow me to leverage my strengths and stretch me to grow further in those strengths. It would encourage innovation, entrepreneurship, and leadership, while pushing me to learn new skills to be a more effective influence on the business and the industry.

What do you do to relax? At the moment, I am enjoying trying to cook new foods, such as baking bread, grilling meats, and making desserts to name a few. Cooking is chemistry where you get to lick the spoon!