Craig Lamers started his career in his senior year of high school at a paper mill as a co-op student in the accounting department. Later in his career, a family friend led him to a CFO position at Suburban Electric, which he accepted at age 34 — with no predecessor to learn from. “I had to quickly figure out what it meant to be the CFO,” Lamers says. While becoming CFO at a young age was a proud moment, it also “was probably the biggest challenge of my career.”
For that reason, Lamers says “one of the most important things CFOs can do is develop other financial leaders.” He counts Suburban Enterprises CEO Perry Schisel among his mentors.
Lamers, who has three boys with his wife, Tammy, arrived at Bassett Mechanical in 2019 as senior director of finance, moving into the CFO role a year later. He says new financial leaders should take the initiative to “learn the business you are a part of … get away from your desk and engage in the business.”
Lamers is passionate about change in the industry, “where financial professionals are becoming business partners that help develop and drive strategic vision and initiatives.”
