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There’s no doubt Michelle Collins was inspired by her mother. “Growing up, she was always working full time, which was a great example for me,” said Collins, who spent the occasional weekend at the office with her mom putting media kits together, along with other advertising-related tasks.
But while both of her parents worked hard, neither had a college education. They wanted more for Collins, especially her mother, who was born in the U.S. shortly after her parents emigrated from Italy. “They did not want me to struggle the way they had struggled.”
After racing through an undergraduate Bachelor of Science degree in marketing at Oakland University, she enrolled in Lawrence Technological University’s MBA program, where her then-boyfriend, now-husband Steve Collins, was already pursuing an MBA. “Steve and I would compete against each other to get the higher grade,” laughed Collins, who was working nearby at Federal-Mogul as a marketing analyst. She also had a familial connection to LTU—her uncle, David Canavesio, graduated from LTU in 1973 and was a founding member of what is now LTU’s largest fraternity, Sigma Phi Epsilon.
While her job focused on data and metrics, she was always drawn to marketing’s creative side and jumped at an opportunity to develop promotional incentives at Volkswagen of America, Inc. after completing her MBA in 2004. “I loved working there,” said Collins, who was rising in the ranks. But after the economic pressures of the Great Recession, which took a toll on the auto industry, she chose to leave her job in 2008 rather than relocate to the company’s new headquarters in Virginia. By then, she and her husband had two toddler sons.
“I was really stressed out about it because I had always worked,” she said. After her husband suggested she stay home with their kids for a while, she left the workforce. “It gave me time with my sons that I probably would not have had otherwise during those really formative years.” She kept in touch with her network, and when her oldest was ready for kindergarten, “That is when I started dipping my toes back in. I did not want to be out of the workforce too long.”
While she longed to return to her field, the job market was still recovering, and she accepted a supply chain job as a contract employee with Volkswagen, expediting parts to auto dealerships. “I thought, well, that is not what I really want to do, but it will get me back in, and I can figure it out.”
It turned out to be “a lot of fun” for Collins, and she was glad to be working again, even as she continued to search for a job in her field, ultimately accepting a job at BorgWarner in 2013 as a marketing analyst.
She has since worked her way up as a supervisor, manager, and director and is currently the company’s global director of marketing and public relations, overseeing a team of over 20 people located in the U.S., Brazil, China, Germany, and Mexico.
“I love it. It never gets boring. Every day is something new,” said Collins of the team’s responsibilities, which include marketing and branding, public relations, social media, digital engagement, and even the Indy 500, one of Collins’s favorite events.
The company’s connection to the race began in 1928 when four companies merged to form Borg-Warner Corporation; one of the founders also co-founded the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
In 1935, Borg-Warner Corporation commissioned the creation of a trophy honoring the winners of the Indy 500; nearly 100 years later, Collins and her team are responsible for updating the trophy with the face of every winner, which is permanently displayed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum—as well as miniature replicas called Baby Borgs, which are awarded each year to the winning driver and team owner(s) respectively.
Collins also makes sure BorgWarner executives are media-trained for public-facing events and interviews. As the company’s spokesperson, she responds to media inquiries about critical events, such as when a tornado destroyed one of the company’s largest plants in the U.S. in 2020.
“I have been at BorgWarner for a long time, and I have created a reputation for myself there. Of course, it has taken a long time to build that up and be considered someone who is trusted, but that is part of my job,” said Collins, who is often required to keep information confidential long before it is ready for public knowledge.
She also gives credit to the leaders who had faith in her. “Even if I did not have every single skill to tick the box, I had to be good enough where they knew I was teachable.” In fact, that is her advice for anyone who wants to move up. “Nobody is an expert on anything, even after doing it for years. You can always learn.”
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