Header School of Business namesake mentors students through Alvernia's executive-in-residence program

Greg Header '97 shares professional journey and keys to success

by Sarah Matarella

Reading, PA (03/03/2025) — Greg Header '97, Alvernia's Executive in Residence (EIR) and the namesake of the university's Header School of Business, touted the power of people during a campus speech to students, faculty and staff on Thursday, his second EIR speaking engagement.

"Greg Header's keynote address, 'My Journey and Keys to Success,' offers our students an invaluable opportunity to learn from a distinguished entrepreneur whose journey exemplifies the transformative power of education and perseverance. His story is a testament to what can be achieved through dedication and hard work," said Dean of the College of Business, Communication and Leadership, Travis Berger, Ph.D.

The distinguished alumni award winner discussed his journey of success as a young entrepreneur at 23, the challenges that came from losing his job at 24, being diagnosed with Lyme disease at 25, finishing his management degree at Alvernia at 27, and founding Solar Innovations, a premier architectural glazing system company recently acquired by a Fortune 500 company.

"The biggest thing I tell everybody is that you can't do it alone. There's nobody that knows everything. There's power in people," said Header. "If you build a bench, surround yourself with a few people to help guide you through the unknown. That bench will change at times, but it really should be people in the industry you're involved in to show you what mistakes they've made. It's a really powerful thing. It limits your mistakes, balances you and gives you perspective."

Following his talk, the 180+ students, faculty and staff in attendance had the opportunity to ask Header questions. Topics included overcoming doubt when starting a professional journey, best practices for risk taking and decision making, managing work-life balance, habits for success, working in the family business and more.

"As a student in the Header School of Business, I'm going to connect what he said to my classes and use him as a role model. He shared about all of the work he's done and did a great job connecting both meetings that we had in the previous semester and connecting those stories together," said Anthony Repko, a first-year business management major.

The EIR program, now in its ninth year, allows students to gain valuable insight into real-world experiences directly from regional industry executives. Students also learn about the specific skills that leaders are looking for in college graduates, various leadership styles and real-life professional scenarios through interactive sessions and classroom lectures with Yuengling and other executives.

Prior Alvernia Executives-in-Residence:

Wendy Yuengling, chief administrative officer of D.G. Yuengling & Son

Andy Moses, senior vice president of sales and solutions with Penske Logistics

Ira Trauber, president of TRIOSE

Paula Barrett, RKL, LLP partner

Paul Cohn, chief client experience officer and team leader relationship manager with Clermont Wealth Strategies

Chris Pruitt, CEO of East Penn Manufacturing

Andrea Funk, former CEO of Cambridge-Lee

Scott Gruber, CEO of Tompkins Financial

Carl Anderson, general partner of Cannondale Partners LLP

Rob Wolf, president of LaunchDM and CEO of HeyBuddy