Bob Scaccia
Founder and CEO
Bob Scaccia is the founder and CEO of USA Firmware. A graduate of the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, Bob is the second of three generations in his family to enter the field. He lived out his passion for electrical engineering in his early career through design management and leadership roles with Raytheon, Philips (formerly Picker International), Keithley Instruments and Thermo Scientific. While pursuing his Master’s Degree in Business from Baldwin Wallace, earning a 4.0 GPA, Bob took his passion for firmware engineering to the next level and launched USA Firmware in 2011, growing the business from $200,000 its first year, to the multi-million-dollar, award-winning company it is today. Bob is a key industry voice on the importance of firmware as an essential engineering discipline and is a noted and vocal advocate on such issues as finding and training engineering talent to support transformational product development in today’s digital world.
Bill Merkel
President
Bill Merkel, President, brings nearly 40 years of experience in product development, industrial automation, semiconductors, and electric vehicle charging innovation to this leadership role. His ability to drive meaningful business results along with his business development acumen have helped lead USA Firmware to significant growth and business momentum. Bill builds relationships that will deliver the embedded expertise to accelerate development of smart and connected devices. Previously, Bill held positions at Nidec Industrial Solutions, DynaMotors, Inc. and Keithley Instruments, Inc. He holds a B.E.E.E. from Youngstown State University and three U.S. patents.
Suzanne Nebe Mullenhour
Director Talent Solutions
Suzanne Nebe Mullenhour, Director of Talent Solutions, brings over 20 years of experience in talent acquisition strategy & recruitment, diversity & inclusion, and partner engagement to this leadership role. Suzanne leads the strategic planning and execution of flexible talent solutions and direct hire recruitment to organizations which turn smart ideas into smart, connected devices. Suzanne’s previous positions at The People Principal, Robert Half International, First Brands Group, Forest City Realty Trust and Paul Lawrence Associates have prepared her to lead relationship management, talent recruiting, and workforce development.
Michael A. Kress
Vice President, Engineering
Michael Kress, Vice President of Engineering, brings 40 years of exceptional engineering team leadership, a keen attention to customer needs, the ability to assist in all aspects of business execution, and acute prowess for managing critical and time-sensitive projects to this role. Most recently, he was USA Firmware’s Engineering Manager, a role he assumed when he joined the company in 2023. Michael was one of three founders of Applied Vision and helped to grow the organization into a world leader of machine vision systems for the food and beverage market. With extensive experience in product development, system, hardware, and software engineering, Michael has developed hundreds of new products and features and has been a contributing developer in dozens of U.S and international patents during his career.
Adam Sonnhalter
Advisory Team, Board Member
Adam serves as Board Member for USA Firmware and brings an extensive background in merger and acquisition transactions. Adam graduated with distinction from the University of Michigan with a BBA Degree in Finance and spent the next eight years as an investment banker on Wall Street for companies like Patricof & Co., BNY Capital Markets (a subsidiary of The Bank of New York), and Bear Stearns.
Rick Benson
Advisory Team, Board Member
Rick joined USA Firmware as a Board Member in 2019 and brings to the team over 37 years of experience in design and engineering management, earned from his former role as president of AVID Technologies, a successful design services firm. Rick holds a BS Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from SUNY of Buffalo and an MBA from Baldwin Wallace University.