Executive in Residence
The Executive in Residence program at the College of Business invites successful alumni to visit campus for a number of days. Throughout their visit, executives will present to a variety of classes, meet one-on-one with students, participate in panels, network with students and faculty, as well as hold a college-wide presentation. The Executive in Residence event is an incredible opportunity for College of Business undergraduate and graduate students to gain valuable connections with high level leaders in a variety of business fields and learn about their rise to success.
Mike Ruettgers, Retired CEO of EMC | October 6 - 9
Michael C. Ruettgers is a distinguished member of the Idaho State University alumni community, with a career marked by significant accomplishments. Originally from Oklahoma, Ruettgers began his college education at UCLA where he majored in mathematics. After his first year at UCLA, Ruettgers transferred to a private school in Washington to pursue his dream of becoming a CEO. While there, he read an article stating the CEOs of the future would be predominantly marketing majors. That article prompted Mike to seek out a university that offered a marketing degree, and he enrolled the next semester at Idaho State University as a marketing major. Ruettgers graduated from Idaho State in 1964 with a BBA in Marketing and enrolled shortly after that in Harvard Business School’s MBA program.
After earning his MBA from Harvard, he went to work for Raytheon’s missile systems division where he played a role in the Patriot Missile Program. Ruettgers joined EMC Corporation in 1988 when the company was on the verge of bankruptcy.
Ruettgers became CEO of EMC in 1992 and led the company through more than a decade of profitable growth. From his arrival through year-end 2000, EMC revenues grew from $200 million to nearly $10 billion. During the 10-year bull market from October 1990 to October 2000, under Ruettgers’ leadership, EMC achieved the highest single-decade performance of any listed stock in the history of the New York Stock Exchange.
During his term as CEO, Ruettgers was named one of the “World’s Top 25 Executives” by BusinessWeek, one of the “Best CEOs in America” by Worth magazine, one of the “25 Most Powerful People in Networking” in 2000 by Network World, and “CEO of the Year” in 2000 by Massachusetts Investor’s Digest. In 2001, Fast Company magazine named EMC “The World’s Most Customer-Centric Company,” based on EMC’s fanatical devotion to customer service.
Ruettgers has been a frequent speaker at influential venues around the world, including the World Economic Forum, the Economic Club of Detroit, the INSEAD Global Leaders Series Lecture, and major IT industry conferences. He is also a frequent contributor of articles on key policy issues, including the urgent need to reform math and science education, the use of digital technologies to improve healthcare, and the responsibility all organizations have to protect and preserve their information.
In 1999, Babson College recognized Ruettgers for being an “information age visionary” and awarded him with an honorary Doctor of Laws degree. In May 2000, Worcester Polytechnic Institute conferred on him the honorary degree of Doctor of Engineering. In November 2002, Ruettgers was inducted into the CRN Industry Hall of Fame, joining a select group of the innovators, entrepreneurs, and leaders who have helped shape and expand the global IT industry.
Ruettgers sits on the Idaho State University College of Business Leadership Board. He was also recognized by Idaho State in 1993 when he received the College of Business Professional Achievement Award and again in 1999 when he was honored with the highest alumni recognition at the university, the Distinguished Alumnus Award.
In 2023, Ruettgers generously provided the funding for two of the most transformational spaces in the College of Business’s history - the Orin C. Smith Global Finance Lab and the Walter Brown Center for Sales Excellence. Ruettgers named these spaces in honor of former friends and colleagues who were industry leaders in finance and sales.