Plexus in Auburn Hills adds 20

There’s nobody quite like Plexus Systems, Inc. – just ask executive vice-president Thomas Mackey.

The Auburn Hills company is one of only a handful of companies worldwide that deal with enterprise resource planning software, and they’re the only company, Mackey says, that uses software designed for the Internet. Competitors are the likes of Microsoft, Oracle and the European SAP.

“I would say that nobody who has seen our product would say those companies are better – our product is so far superior in terms of the footprint, the extent of what it does and the ease of the people who use it,” he says.

The company’s Internet-based tech makes it intuitive for ‘net users, Mackey says.

And the market clearly agrees – in the last six months, Plexus has hired 20.

“We’re always interviewing and hiring programmers, we’re always interviewing and in the mode of bringing technical people on,” Mackey says.

The company has also added four new sales people, he says.

The competitive marketplace, Mackey says, has been to Plexus’ advantage.

“What we’re seeing happening is the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots,'” he says. “The automotive industry is struggling… some companies are fading, but as they fade, other companies become stronger, even amidst the ‘downturn,’ there are a certain segment of companies in growth mode.”

In the year ahead, Mackey says Plexus plans to expand south, and also into new industries: “Our core is manufacturing and automotive, but we’re also moving aggressively into medical and aerospace. That’s a great message for whole area here, automotive is important but we need a far more extensive medical and government business.”

Source: Thomas Mackey, Plexus
Writer: Nancy Kaffer