Bob Hess
Managing Principal
NKF Consulting
Tel: 312-576-8363
Fax: 312-386-3119
AREAS OF SPECIALIZATION
- Facility Network Planning
- Expansion and Relocation Feasibility
- Locational Strategies & Optimization
- Economic Development Consulting
- Supply Chain and Real Estate Process Improvement
- Real Estate Acquisition & Incentive Negotiations
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND:
With over 22 years of professional services experience, Bob Hess is highly regarded as an expert in the field of supply chain strategies, global location strategies and corporate site selection. Mr. Hess has successfully completed over 200 significant projects for Fortune 1000 and Middle Market companies primarily in the manufacturing and distribution sectors, including several large capital investment deployment assignments in Asia, the Americas and EMEA.
Prior to joining NKF Consulting, Mr. Hess was a leading partner in Cushman & Wakefield’s Global Business Consulting Group based in Chicago and Founder of the firm’s Global Supply Chain Solutions/Industrial consulting practice.
Additional experience includes his role as a lead partner with Deloitte & Touche for 18 years in their Fantus Locations Strategies service line, a specialty consulting practice known for industry leading strategic facility planning, location strategy, site selection and corporate real estate advisory services. Aside from his supply chain planning and facility location strategy core competencies, other strategy and operations experience includes distribution network optimization, manufacturing rationalization and consolidation, relocation feasibility, strategic cost reduction, large capital investment program management, commercial and industrial site evaluation and due diligence methods, detailed labor market/workforce analysis, and complex financial incentive negotiations.
Select occupier clients include A.K. Steel, American Tool, Andersen Windows, AMWAY/ABG, Best Buy, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Circuit City, City of Toronto, Copperweld/LTV, Disney, Entergy, Gander Mountain, Gap Inc., Georgia Power, Johns Manville, Kikkoman Foods, Kmart/Sears, Leedsworld, 3M, McDonnell Douglas, Nestle Nutrition, Nestle Prepared Foods, Novartis Biotech, Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Office Depot, Pechiney, Radio Flyer, Sherwin Williams, ThyssenKrupp Budd, ThyssenKrupp Steel, TIMET, Wausau Insurance and Wrigley.
EDUCATION:
Mr. Hess earned his BA in Economic Geography/Urban and Regional Planning, cum laude from the University of Minnesota, and an MBA in Marketing Management from DePaul University in Chicago. Mr. Hess attended Northwestern University in Chicago completing Executive Development Programs in Global Supply Chain Management and Factory Physics/Lean Manufacturing and recently MIT for Creative Problem Solving/System Dynamics.