[VIDEO] Corvette Plant Director Ray Theriault Profiled By Fox 2 Detroit

Quick, can you name the boss of the factory that built your phone or baked your favorite cookie?

Not very likely, but just ask the average Corvette enthusiast, the name of the plant director at the Corvette Assembly Plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and you’re likely to get the correct answer.

Living that dream job right now – at least for a Corvette enthusiast – is a 28-year General Motors veteran named Ray Theriault, whose path to his current job, believe it or not, started all the way back in grammar school.

“When I was in second grade, my teacher arrived in a Corvette,” the Michigan native explains in a new interview with Detroit2 News, which was recently granted exclusive access to the Bowling Green plant. “You know, that caught my attention in second grade – what is THAT (car), right? How do I get a car like that? And I would say that is the moment I can remember of really a Corvette capturing my attention and me falling in love with it.”

But it’s still not an easy path from second grade to Corvette plant director, for sure.

With an engineering degree from Lawrence Technological University just outside of Detroit, Theriault eventually joined GM, who paid for him to get a master’s degree in Automotive Engineering from the University of Michigan.

Starting out with the company as an electrical controls engineer, designing equipment that actually builds things like engines, cars, and more, Theriault says he progressed through many manufacturing opportunities in southeastern Michigan. He and his family even spent five years in China, where he worked in Quality Space, responsible for quality through Asia.

Back in April 2023, about the time Kai Spande had announced his retirement as Corvette plant director, Theriault says he had actually interviewed for another international opportunity with GM, but shortly before the announcement he had gotten that job, the company “thankfully pivoted and I came to Bowling Green, so here I am in my dream job.”

For the benefit of the uninitiated, in the video with Detroit2 News, Theriault pointed out the four versions of the C8 Corvette being built at the plant, including the Stingray, Z06, E-Ray, and the ZR1, each in convertible and coupe variants and each filling “a unique need” in the marketplace.

In case you’re wondering, yes, one of the perks of serving as the plant director is getting to drive one of the cars built by his team. Currently, he has the privilege of climbing behind the wheel of a 670-horsepower Z06 as his daily driver, which he refers to as a “street-legal race car.”

Theriault says he always knew the Corvette had a loyal following, but he’s seen just how fanatical they can be in his job at the factory.

“I like to remind our employees that it’s not every factory where people will bring the product back to celebrate the actual product,” he says. “So there’s probably people who are iPhone fans or Samsung fans, but nobody takes their phone back to the factory to actually celebrate the product. For Corvette, there are rallies that return the car, the product, to not only celebrate the car itself but to celebrate the people that make it.”

Theriault says he was surprised how talented the workers at the Kentucky factory are. “The staff that I work with here,” he says, “they’re absolutely brilliant and put their energy and their whole mind into making these dream cars every day.”

As for getting his own dream job, Theriault believes two factors came into play, the first being just to follow your passion. “And along the way in my career,” he adds, “I’ve had mentors that would encourage me to take opportunities that maybe hadn’t even occurred to myself. So taking risks along the way and being a little bit outside your comfort space and looking for those assignments that can help you grow, that is absolutely critical to developing a career and maybe working towards your dream job in the future.”

And to think it all started with his second-grade teacher and her eye-catching Corvette, something he hopes to continue with the current generation of kids.

“It’s important to me to be an active influence on the people around me, young people, and do what I can to support the people from the factory that are trying to have the same impact in the community as well, to inspire others to do great things and to solve problems.”

You can view the video on Ray Theriault at Detroit’s Fox 2 News:

Source:
Fox 2 Detroit

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