John C. Kennedy has been the President and CEO of Autocam Corporation since 1988, when he purchased the assets of Autocam from Autodie in a leveraged buyout. In the year prior to his ownership, Autocam had revenues of $8 million and had operating losses. Today, Autocam is a worldwide manufacturer of precision machined components for the automotive and medical instruments industries. Forbes magazine has ranked Autocam Corporation as one of the best small public companies nationwide and the best small company in Michigan in 1994, ‘95, ‘96 and ‘98. Kennedy attributes the company’s success to its emphasis on continuous process improvement efforts and employee involvement.

Beyond his business commitments, Kennedy devotes time to a number of organizations. He is a member of the Boards of 5/3rd Bank, Sligh Furniture Company, Lacks Enterprises, Pyper Products and VanAndel Institute. He is the Past Chairman of Healthcare 2000, the Right Place Program, and the 1995 United Way Campaign. He is a previous board member of the University of Detroit Mercy, Grand Valley State University and the Michigan Business Roundtable. Additionally, Kennedy served on several community capital campaign committees. He was previously a commissioner for the Michigan Department of Transportation.

Kennedy received his BA from the University of Detroit Mercy and his MBA from the University of Michigan. He has been named to the 2002 Junior Achievement West Michigan Business Hall of Fame, he’s received the 2002 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award and he has been named the 2004 Business Person of the Year by the Economic Club of Grand Rapids. Kennedy is past recipient of the Leadership Award by the Grand Valley University Foundation, Jaycees Distinguished Service Award, and Michigan Jaycees Five Outstanding Young People of Michigan Award.