Biography

A California native, born Los Angeles , I was raised in southern California and graduated Taft High School in Woodland Hills.  By the 11th grade, I was working full time as an Operations Manager a computer software publishing firm, Edu-Ware Services, with 28 direct reports, producing educational and gaming software for the Apple and IBM computers. 

After a year of school at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, and having a sincere desire to serve my country, see the world and to further my education, I joined the United States Air Force and began my career in Human Resources.

Initially, I was stationed at Tyndall Air Force Base in Panama City, Florida .  However, being from California , I had seen a beach before.  I should have felt grateful, but instead, I felt cheated. I had joined the military to see the world.  So, I put in for “anywhere” and ended up at Hofn, a very remote radar site in Iceland, on the far side of Europe's largest glacier.

I was in Iceland for a year . I was there when President Ronald Reagan and Secretary-General of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev met at the Reykjavik Summit , essentially beginning the thaw of the Cold War.  After Iceland, I was stationed at RAF Fairford in Gloucester , England. I t was very exciting to be in Europ e as the Berlin Wall fe ll. During this time, I was working as an HR Generalist, managing performance appraisals, training programs, recognition programs, information security, processing terminations and other HR duties. And, when those services were not required, I was usually given an M-16, helmet, flak vest and sent out to guard the perimeter as part of the air base ground defense force team.

Returning stateside, I spent 6 years at the Space and Missile Systems Center , in California , working with rocket scientists and other engineers, helping them acquire and deploy space assets. Though most of my time was spent at Los Angeles Air Force Base, I often traveled to our launch sites that included Vandenburg Air Force Base in Lompoc, California, and to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.  

While working full time on active duty, I earned several college degrees, including a BS in Business Administration and an MS degree in HR Management, both from Chapman University.

After 12 years of faithful service, it was time to transition back into civilian life, while keeping a military association with the active Air Force reserves, as a member of the 146th Airlift Wing, California Air National Guard, retiring in August of 2005.

Working for BD Systems, as an Organizational Development consultant, I provided services to the U.S. Air Force, where I grew a profitable new business unit.  Then, I was offered the chance to work as a training manager for Special Devices, manufacturing explosive devices.  Desiring to work for a world-class organization, I moved on to The Boeing Company, as an Employee Involvement Coach, ultimately helping members of the C-17 Globemaster III team win the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award. Later, I transferred to Boeing's Rocketdyne facility, helping to support the RS-68 liquid-fueled rocket engine development team as a HR generalist. 

Desiring to move back into a manager role, I was hired at Blue Cross of California as a Human Resources Manager at their Newbury Park facility.  I was hired initially to provide management training, but found myself deep in an employee relations manager role.

Desiring to get back into training and development, I joined the fast-growing WMC Mortgage (later acquired by General Electric), as their training manager, increasing the company value from $20m to over $800m, as the company grew from 411 to over 2,700 employees. 

Sadly, with the decline of the mortgage industry, WMC Mortgage closed and all employees were laid off.  After WMC, I worked for Ownit Mortgage Solutions as their Manager of Marketing and Training, but they also fell prey to economic forces and the company was closed 10 months after I joined them. Our funding was cut on Friday and the doors were shut by the following Tuesday. This was a shame because I got to work with some really great people and enjoyed several career successes.

After Ownit Mortgage Solutions, I spent several years selling financial products. However, I found that it was not my true passion. Though I learned many new skills (sales, marketing, cold calling, client development, etc.), I am now back in the Human Resources profession, working for a large privately held bank, helping to set up employees for success. My ultimate goal is to work with a world-class Human Resources department, highly valued and respected by both management and employees, where I can produce measurable bottom line results, helping to set up the organization and its people for success. 

I have kept my skills current through active membership in PIHRA (Professionals In Human Resources Association), the NHRA (National Human Resources Association) and the SHRM (Society for Human Resources Management) and various on-line resources.

Respectfully,

-Kevin

Kevin Panet
Simi Valley , CA 93063
(805) 285-1412
Kevin@KevinPanet.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinpanet