Mike Brunetto is a 1976 graduate of General Engineering (now Systems Design and
Engineering) with a secondary concentration in Engineering Management. In 1984, he received
his MBA from Washington University in St. Louis with a concentration in Production and
Operations Management.
Mike recently retired as Senior Manager of Construction for Panera Bread, directing the
construction of new Panera bakery-cafes, as well as its twenty-two food processing and
distribution facilities across the country.
Prior to that, Mike spent the majority of his career with Anheuser-Busch (now Anheuser-Busch
InBev), in various engineering, construction, operations, sales and marketing and executive
positions for the world’s largest brewer. He credits the diversity of the ISE / GE degree for the
broad range of job responsibilities he enjoyed, and likes to describe his career as “a series of
happy accidents”!
An enthusiastic proponent of the ISE degrees and department, Mike is a twice-past president of
the ISE Alumni Advisory Board. He was the industry sponsor for four ISE Senior Design Teams
while with Anheuser-Busch, as well as hiring two ISE interns. He is a recipient of the General
Engineering Distinguished Service Award, the Gamma Epsilon Distinguished Alumni Award, and
the University of Illinois Alumni Association’s Loyalty Award, and a member of the President’s
Council.
A frequent presenter on campus, Mike has presented to SWE, SHPE, MEforMe, ISGE, SITES,
NAESC and SBME on topics such as interviewing skills, engineering career paths, personal
branding, and “myth-busting” the engineer stereotype
