Cummins elevates five executives to VP roles

Cummins announced several vice president promotions including Ricardo Roman, Michelle Probst, Gbile Adewunmi, Matt McQueen effective March 1.

Chair and CEO Jennifer Rumsey said the leaders showcase expertise and commitment advancing the engine manufacturer’s culture, performance and sustainability strategy.

Roman steps up overseeing finance across Cummins’ components segment following integration oversight for the major Meritor acquisition. Probst expands her human resources duties from leadership development to now directing talent processes like performance management globally.

Adewunmi leads several power systems industrial units after spearheading improvements balancing profitability priorities with decarbonization assistance for customers. McQueen leverages extensive operations experience guiding supply chain coordination amid still-recovering post-pandemic markets.

Meanwhile, Ashwath Ram, who was appointed vice president in January, will retain India leadership duties while taking on additional global supply chain responsibilities. He has led strong regional growth since 2020.

The moves come at a pivotal stage as Cummins evolves technology for conventional and emerging transportation markets, aiming to sustain success through the energy transition.

Read more about each of the leaders below.

Ricardo Roman – Vice President, Components Finance

Roman stepped into the role of controller for the Components Business Unit in 2022 during a critical period of evolution for the business. He not only helped with the successful acquisition and integration of Jacobs Vehicle Systems and Meritor, the largest acquisition in Cummins’ history, but Roman also played a key role in evolving the Components product portfolio for the future. He is laser focused on driving profitable growth and has partnered closely with the leaders of the Components businesses to drive record financial performance.

During his more than 23 years at Cummins, Roman has built a reputation as a true business partner with a commitment to teamwork, accountability, analytical thinking and financial excellence. He has also built an extensive knowledge of Cummins’ businesses and processes through his finance leadership in the Engine Business, Aftermarket, Global Supply Chain and Components Business, among other roles.

Prior to Cummins, Roman spent five years working in the Peruvian banking system. He has a bachelor’s degree in economics with a concentration in finance from the Catholic University of Peru, a master’s degree in business administration with a concentration in finance and operations from Purdue University, and is a Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSP) and Certified Management Accountant (CMA).

Michelle Probst – Vice President, Leadership and Talent Development

Probst recently expanded her role from Leadership Development to now leading Cummins Talent Development programs and processes globally. In this role, Probst is responsible for building and leading a network of subject matter experts responsible for building capabilities and enabling a performance and development culture at all levels of the organization. She will do this through establishing talent strategies, infrastructure and processes, as well as advising the business and sharing insights.

Probst has played a pivotal role in advancing the leadership culture at Cummins, acting as leader and HR sponsor for many leadership programs. Under her leadership, the Building Success in You program, one of Cummins’ newest focused on the Cummins leadership behaviors, reached a milestone in 2023, graduating more than 4,000 employee graduates globally since its inception. She is also committed to progressing Cummins’ DE&I strategy through integrating key themes into its Leadership Development framework. She is currently assessing and evolving the Cummins’ performance management processes and systems.

Throughout her nearly 14 years of HR leadership at Cummins, Probst has provided human resources leadership and thought partnership for more than 10 Cummins functions and the Power Systems Business. Her extensive experience has given her not only the opportunity to gain broad visibility and understanding of the company, but also relationships and trust necessary to evolve its talent development processes to the next phase. Prior to coming to Cummins, Probst held several HR roles in the finance and banking sector and was formerly a tax accountant before making the shift into HR.

Gbile Adewunmi – Vice President, Power Systems Industrial Markets

Adewunmi took over leadership of the PSBU Industrial Markets in January 2023 as part of the reorganization of the Power Systems Business to enable a laser-like focus on ownership, profitability and growth. In this role, he is responsible for driving, implementing and executing a global strategy for Cummins’ Defense, Marine, Mining, Oil & Gas, and Rail lines of business. He is also responsible for PSBU Aftermarket business.

Both in his current role, and in his former role leading PSBU Strategy, Adewunmi has been a driving force in helping PSBU balance improvement in the core business with positioning the organization to support Cummins’ customers’ decarbonization journeys. He excels at building strong relationships, driving alignment in complex internal and external business situations, and blending strategic thinking with execution. Adewunmi also has a passion for building diverse, inclusive and high-performing teams and empowering others to fulfill their potential.

Adewunmi joined Cummins in 2012 as a manager in the Corporate Strategy group. From 2013 to 2016, he worked in the New and ReCon Parts organization where he led the Global On-Highway Accounts and Global Product Management teams. In 2017, Adewunmi moved to South Africa as the EBU and Parts marketing director for the Africa Middle East ABO, then in 2019 moved to Ghana to lead the Cummins North and West Africa Regional Distribution Organization.

Matt McQueen – Vice President, EBU Supply Chain

McQueen assumed leadership of Cummins’ Engine Business Supply Chain in 2022 during one of the most important periods in the company’s history as many of its businesses continued to navigate the supply constraints and other challenges caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. 

McQueen’s extensive Cummins experience and supply chain expertise, paired with his team-based approach to problem-solving, resulted in continued delivery to its customers, a focus on improvements to employee health and safety, and inventory reductions that were significantly ahead of plan in 2023. McQueen has also played a key role in repositioning its EBU plants for the future as it continues to build out and strengthen its manufacturing and supply chain network to support the industry’s first fuel agnostic engine platforms, as well as continue to deliver more than 1.3 million advanced engines every year.

Throughout McQueen’s nearly 28 years at Cummins, he’s held many leadership positions in manufacturing, quality and supply chain and is seen as one of the company’s most trusted supply chain advisors. He first joined the EBU Leadership Team in 2017 and has worn many important hats for the EBU business, including leading the Pickup Business and Quality organizations as well as twice leading the supply chain. Prior to that, McQueen worked in or led the supply chain for its Power Systems, Components and Emissions Solutions businesses. He was also the plant manager at three plants, including the Jamestown Engine Plant, Columbus Fuel Systems Plant and Juarez Fuel Systems Plant.

Ashwath Ram, Vice President – Supply Chain and India ABO Leader

Ram has more than 20 years’ experience at Cummins and has worked directly with all five of the company’s business units. He brings strong leadership skills and an entrepreneurial mindset to his expanded role leading the global Supply Chain function. In this role, Ram will draw upon his achievements navigating complex business environments and implementing organizational change. His responsibilities include setting the strategic direction and driving operations for Cummins’ integrated supply chain functions globally, including Procurement; Manufacturing; Planning; New and ReCon Parts; and Health, Safety and Environment.

Over the last four years, Ram has served as managing director of Tata Cummins and Cummins India ABO Leader (two responsibilities he will retain in his current scope) with accountability for managing and growing the India business. Under his leadership, the India ABO has been on a solid growth trajectory with record sales and the highest compound annual growth rate and year-over-year growth in the ABO’s history. Ram oversees the performance of the company’s five business units, including Engine, Power Generation, Distribution, Components and Accelera by Cummins. He also built and mentored a high-performance leadership team and developed a strong, performance driven culture within the ABO.

Ram’s career has taken him from India to the United States and later back to Pune, India, where he resides today. A serial entrepreneur, Ram started and ran several businesses in manufacturing, IT, consulting and design services before returning to Cummins in 2007 to serve in various leadership positions in Power Generation, the Tata Cummins Joint Venture and the Industrial Engine business.

About Cummins

Cummins Inc. is a global power solutions provider to the truck, bus, rail, defense, mining and energy sectors with a broad portfolio spanning diesel, natural gas, electric and hydrogen technologies. Based in Columbus, Indiana, U.S.A., Cummins operates in more than 190 countries with 2022 sales reaching USD35 billion.