Kelly Schmitz is the engineering leader for Power Generation Americas at Cummins Inc., where he manages a team that owns the development, application, and technical support for electric power generators and auxiliary power systems from 2.5 kW to 3.5 MW.

Schmitz joined Cummins in 1999 as a product development engineer and has spent his career leading engineering teams, product development programs, and business teams focused on delivering for customers. In his time at Cummins, he has advanced in roles in Cummins Filtration, Engine Business, New and Recon Parts, and currently Power Generation. While he now resides in Indiana, Schmitz has lived throughout the United States and in France during his multiple assignments.

Schmitz regularly seeks opportunities to mentor women across regions within Cummins and within the commercial vehicle industry, finding ways to build their confidence and develop their potential to challenge its male-dominated workplace culture. He is deeply engaged as a mentor and has sponsored many women on his staff to further their leadership development through Smith College programs. He has also leveraged his position to clear obstacles that prevent women’s advancement and works to provide them with networking opportunities.

Schmitz works hard to be a voice for equity, inclusion, and allyship. He has been a panelist in many forums, including the Cummins Women in Technology conferences in the United States and Mexico, the Cummins Women Empowerment Network, and KPIT Technologies’ Women in Mobility webcast.

Schmitz actively serves in nonprofit organizations in the many communities in which he lives and works. A member of SAE International (formerly the Society of Automotive Engineers), he served on the SAE fellows committee and its board of directors’ nominating committee, where he advocated for “visible diversity” in prominent roles and on the stage at conferences. In both roles, Schmitz drove substantive changes to empower women in engineering and was recognized as an SAE 2023 top contributor. During his tenure, representation of women on SAE’s board increased significantly. He is also a Society of Women Engineers member and ally and leads recognition efforts within Cummins for SWE awards.

Closer to home, he is the former president and longtime board member of the Diversity & Innovation Institute, known as DNOVA, which provides inventive STEM programs and networking opportunities to underrepresented students in Indiana. He is also vice president of the Center Grove Hardwood Club, supporting his local high school basketball program.

Schmitz holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering and an MBA, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He serves on the university’s advisory board for the Master of Science in Engineering Management program.

Schmitz enjoys spending time with his wife and two children, doing home improvement projects, traveling, and cheering on his favorite basketball teams.