Management Bios

Richard Jensen

Owner / President
Richard Jensen is the founder and majority owner of Universal Electronics, Inc. He has served as President since the origin of the company in 1979. Richard's focus is directed toward sales and the building of customer relationships. Prior to his founding of Universal Electronics, he worked in the printed circuit board industry for twenty years. Richard is a University of Wisconsin Lacrosse graduate and avid golfer. He has been married to his wife Kathleen for over 50 years and is a proud father of four children.

Rick Jensen

Executive Vice President
Rick Jensen serves as Executive Vice President and minority owner of Universal Electronics, Inc. As Executive Vice President, Rick is responsible for all day-to-day operations of the company. Prior to serving in his current role, Rick developed the company's information technology department and programmed its previous ERP software. Rick is a University of Wisconsin Whitewater graduate and martial artist. He has been married to his wife Jacquelyn for 13 years and is a proud father of four children.

Steve Kildow

Vice President Materials & Customer Service
Steve brings more than 15 years electronic manufacturing and supply chain experience in both OEM and EMS organizations. His areas of expertise are in lead time reduction, supplier collaboration, and commitment to the highest service levels. His experience with Tier 1 EMS providers and global OEM companies provides strategic direction and processes for Universal Electronics.

Dave Karlovich

Vice President of Finance
Dave has seven years of experience in the contract electronics assembly business and over 18 years of experience working with middle market manufacturing companies. His areas of expertise are cash flow management, product costing and financial analysis. He has been married for 15 years and has two children. In his free time he enjoys coaching soccer, golf and biking.

Ray Cottrell

Vice President of Sales and Marketing
Ray brings 20-plus years of global sales, management, and business development experience. His expertise includes building global sales teams and creating new sales channels while providing leadership for international organizations in engineering, product development, and manufacturing serving world-class OEMs.

Travis Grob

Vice President of Operations
With over 20 years EMS experience including Director of Operations and Manufacturing, Test and Quality Engineering Management at a Tier 1 Contract Manufacturer, Travis joined the Universal team in 2008 as VP of Operations. His strong analytical and organizational skills combined with his leadership ability and drive for continuous improvement provides solid focus and direction for the team.

Roger Blazel

Vice President of Engineering
With over 30 years of electronics manufacturing experience, Roger started his technical career in medical product design and came to Universal Electronics in 1985 as engineering manager. His areas of expertise include project management, early involvement in product development, DFM and new product introduction. Roger provides technical leadership to the engineering department. He is a graduate of MATC and Marquette University.

Marc Haag

General Manager – East Troy
Marc serves as the General Manager for the Universal Electronics East Troy plant. Marc brings more than 15 years experience in the front-end operations of EMS providers. He has extensive experience in customer service, purchasing, sales and quoting. His background provides leadership and direction for the East Troy plant.