Meet  Merle Lewis Class of 1970

    Surely Merle Lewis knows he has the making of a great story: the challenges of growing up in a large family of 17 children in rural South Dakota...the creativeness in funding a college education...the discipline of military training...the commitment to community and family...the responsibility of leading one of the South Dakota’s largest corporations, recently listed by Fortune magazine as one of America’s most admired companies.

    The Merle Lewis story remains very much a work in progress, all part of a high-profile career that’s enjoyed substantial success. Focused and goal-oriented, his strong leadership skills have benefited many groups, organizations and the company he heads today as chairman and chief executive officer.

    In the article that follows, he talks about his beginnings at Dakota State University to leadership at NorthWestern Corporation.

I wanted to be a mathematics and science teacher. I chose Dakota State partly because of its reputation for graduating top-quality teachers. Another even more important reason was the interview I had with then-President Harry Bowes as part of the academic scholarship selection process. President Bowes impressed me with his vision for the university, and I wanted to be part of an institution with that type of leadership. Incidentally, Dakota State was named General Beadle when I started in the fall of 1966.

As one of 17 children growing up on a farm near Howard, S.D., financial assistance was imperative if I was to attend college. I was grateful to receive an academic scholarship valued at $100. In addition, I applied for and received a $2,000 National Science Foundation grant. However, the grant was conditional on being registered as a full-time student at DSU. As I finished my job that summer before college, I had just a little more than $350 in cash. Unfortunately, that amount was not enough to complete my registration—even with the grant and scholarship. I was short about $460. At that time, the U.S. Government had just announced a new guaranteed student loan program. But it was so new, none of the banks were aware of it or participated in it. Yet I needed to find a financial institution that would loan me money through the program. Finally in late November, I was successful in obtaining a loan at a credit union in Howard, S.D. Fortunately I had shared my predicament with Dean of Students, Milo Natwick, and he had permitted me to have a conditional registration pending the outcome of obtaining the loan.

Maintaining a balance was a challenge that required extreme discipline. I had a close relationship with my family near Howard, and I wanted to spend as much time as I could with my wife-to-be, Barbara Minnaert, and her family near Ramona, S.D. I was able to combine a full-time class schedule during the day and a full-time job working at John Morrell & Co. in Madison on the night clean-up crew for the hog processing company. If I was really creative, I could get all my classed scheduled in the morning and early afternoon and be able to work from mid-afternoon until midnight. I married Barbara between my junior and senior years, and ever since she has been a tremendous help in maintaining a balance in life!

On military influences:

During the early years of my education at DSU, Dean of Students Milo Natwick provided some excellent guidance. My career objectives had expanded to a desire for additional formal education after graduation. Since Milo had recently retired from the National Guard, he suggested I might also benefit from leadership development skills through the military. Thanks to Milo’s skillful arrange-

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ments and an overload of classes I had taken during my earlier years in college, I was able to juggle my final year of school with five months of National Guard active duty at Ft. Leonard Wood. I graduated from DSU in May of 1970 and went on to the University of South Dakota School of Law where I graduated in 1973.

I have always been impressed with the importance the military places on education. During my time at Ft. Leonard Wood, it became very clear that an education provides the passport to opportunities. I was heavily influenced by the National Guard leadership and developed a deep respect for their mission and style of training. Later I had the opportunity to attend Officer Candidate School and become a commissioned officer in the South Dakota National Guard. I served in the National Guard and the U.S. Army Reserve for 23 years until retiring in 1992. As I reflect back, I believe the military offers some of the very best leadership training available, including principles that have stood the test of time. My military leadership training has contributed
very directly to the leadership responsibilities I have assumed—whether in my community or during my career with NorthWestern Corporation.

When I think about success, some very simple principles come to mind. Clearly one of those is that whatever you need to do, you need to do it well—better than you did it before. Also important to me has been the necessity of setting and achieving goals. Always—after celebrating achievement—I have then set new goals to continue a lifetime of growing and advancing.

During my professional career I have come to admire the leadership characteristics of Governor Bill Janklow. He sets his objectives clearly, masterfully communicates his ideas, and skillfully sets about accomplishing his goals. While not everyone agrees with his opinions, everyone clearly knows where he stands, and no one doubts the Governor’s passion or his commitment to his beliefs. I have a great deal of respect for Governor Janklow.

When I became chief executive officer of NorthWestern in 1994, the company was a small electric and natural gas utility operating in South Dakota and Nebraska with revenues of $150 million and projected growth rates of 2%-3% annually. We recognized that we were in a changing environment with fundamental restructuring occurring in the energy industry. We developed a vision that would allow us to grow and have a greater impact on a much broader basis. Today, our revenues are $4.8 billion, we operate in every state, our customers have grown from 120,000 to more than two million, and we finished 1999 as our seventh consecutive year of record-breaking earnings.

Earlier this year, Fortune magazine named NorthWestern as one of America’s most admired companies and Forbes magazine named NorthWestern to its Platinum List, a list of America’s exceptional large companies. We attribute these accomplishments to our 10,000 talented team members who are committed and passionate to living our vision statement: “to be America’s best service and solutions experience.” It is truly our people and the resulting teamwork that has made possible the transformation of NorthWestern to the thriving organization it is today.

I can see a similar transformation at Dakota State University. Clearly in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, the educational environment and focus of education were undertaking some significant changes. At the time, Dakota State, together with cooperation and assistance from state government, saw a unique opportunity. The opportunity required a change in focus necessitated by a new environment. Transitioning Dakota State from an institution that produced exceptional teachers to the nationally recognized technology educational center it is today was without a doubt a transformational event. All of us in South Dakota are extremely proud of what Dakota State has accomplished in building a university that is providing students with the very latest technology and the understanding of application of technology. Congratulations on your recognition as one of the most technologically literate schools in the nation and for your extremely high graduate rates. Similar to NorthWestern Corporation, Dakota State University understood its environment, saw an opportunity for a transformational event and proceeded—successfully—to execute its vision.

Be passionate! Living and working passionately allows others to know how strongly you believe in what you are doing and will naturally attract others who will share your enthusiasm and help you accomplish your objectives.

    In just five years, NorthWestern Corporation (NYSE:NOR), headquartered in Sioux Falls, S.D., has become one of America’s fastest-growing companies. From utility roots, the company expanded into communications, data solutions, propane and HVAC.

    Today, NorthWestern is recognized by Fortune as one of America’s most admired companies and by Forbes magazine as a Platinum company.

    Read more about NorthWestern at www.northwestern.com.