Industry Connect

Meslow sees a severe deficit in the number of engineering
and technology graduates produced in Oregon and
the number of jobs that will need to be filled.

Besides managing a highly successful fiber optics company, Eric Meslow chairs the organization that advises how state funds are invested into engineering and technology post-secondary education in Oregon. As chair of the Engineering and Technology Industry Council, he will help the board invest nearly $30 million in college STEM programs in this biennium. This investment is part of a strategic effort to fuel Oregon’s high-tech and other sectors that use technology, including agriculture, healthcare, forestry, electronics, utilities, and retail.

Eric Meslow

“An active, dynamic, collaborate relationship between industry and the higher education institutions in this state is a critical link for economic success,” said Meslow. “If you look across the country, the formula for successful economic development almost always includes fantastic research and educational institutions working collaboratively with industry.”

Meslow is bullish on engineering education and feels it’s very important to provide young Oregonians with opportunities to partake in one of the strongest sectors of the state’s economy. He believes that can only be done if the state’s universities can produce graduates with the skills these industries need.

“When it comes to engineering, a graduate’s hard skills very specifically need to match up with what industry needs,” said Meslow. “The best way that can happen is to have a tight dialogue between educators and industry and a cohesive effort to develop today’s skill sets without losing sight of what kind of critical thinkers industry will need in the future.”

Meslow said there has never been more demand for graduates with STEM degrees to fill jobs in emerging technologies in Oregon, in part because of the graying workforce.

“There is a severe deficit in the number of students produced in Oregon and the number of jobs needing to be filled,” he said. “We are expecting a gap of 3,000 to 5,000 in the number of graduates to the number of job openings, which will force employers to seek applicants from other states and other countries.”

Meslow is quick to recognize that the only thing constant in business is change, particularly in the past decade. “Higher education, if left unaided, generally doesn’t operate on the same frequency or wavelength as industry,” he said. “It is critical for industry and academia to have a mutually beneficial dialogue around technology and marketing trends. Nothing is worse than to educate students and not have a job waiting for them when they graduate.”

Two areas in which Meslow’s company struggles to find local talent include industrial process engineers and well-trained technicians for day-to-day engineering tasks. “There is a need for good tinkerers,” he said. “More often than not, kids going into engineering today have not had the benefit of a good industrial or CTE class in high school, yet we still need people who love to sit and put things together.”

Meslow’s priority dream for engineering education of the future is a broadening or expansion of internship programs at the college level. “A well-formulated paid internship while a student is still at a university is great for the employer and great for the student,” he said. “It gives the student an opportunity to figure out a specialty before it’s too late. From an employer’s standpoint, it is a fantastic way to test drive future employees. It’s a massive win-win situation.”

Eric Meslow is the co-founder of Timbercon, Inc., a leading manufacturer of fiber optic connectivity solutions headquartered in Tualatin, Ore. He has served as Timbercon’s president and chief executive officer since its inception in 1997. Meslow also serves as a board member of the Technology Association of Oregon (TAO) and the Oregon STEM Investment Council, and is chair of the Engineering and Technology Industry Council (ETIC) of the Oregon University System. Meslow received his bachelor’s degree in secondary education from Oregon State University in 1991.

— R. Nickelsen