meet me room
Mark Panico – Legrand
Mark Panico joined Legrand North America as president of the Data Communications Division back in 2004.
Prior to this he held roles with industry giants such as GE and Honeywell. As a result, Mark has gained a
wealth of experience across a wide range of industries both in the US and abroad.
Looking back on your career so
far, is there anything you might
have done differently?
Besides win the lottery, no. I
have been very fortunate to work
for great companies such as GE,
Honeywell and now Legrand.
During my time at each of these
companies, I have worked for and
with some tremendous people,
while gaining experience in a wide
range of industries, both in the US
and abroad. The more knowledge
I gain, the more I realise how
much knowledge there is left to
gain, and this energises me to get
up in the morning.
Can you tell us about any
projects you are currently
working on?
The biggest project we are
currently working on in the data
centre sector is the smart cabinet.
The cabinet features a touch-
screen interface to monitor and
control LED cabinet lighting,
power, security, environmental
sensors and asset management
in a fully integrated design. The
entire cabinet is accessed and
controlled via a single IP address,
providing all of the relevant
cabinet-level details required.
This is a collaborative effort
between several North American
businesses within Legrand, as well
as our team in Europe.
What is the main motivation in
the work that you do?
I am a competitive person by
nature, so winning definitely
motivates me. However, this can
mean different things. Of course,
winning big data centre projects
is certainly a part of this, but
‘winning’ for me is also knowing
that our projects are done to the
customer’s satisfaction, that they
enjoyed working with our team
and that they would work with
us again. I want to make sure
that Legrand is seen as the best
in innovation and customer
service, as well as a leader in
sustainability that focuses
on improving the operations
of both ourselves and our
customers every day.
In addition to earning a living,
how else has your career created
value in your life?
As a result of my career, my
family and I have lived in several
places around the US, as well as
The Hague in the Netherlands.
This has given us the chance to
learn about different cultures,
to experience different lifestyles
and to appreciate the fact that
the world is bigger than our
little corner. I think this
has been particularly
beneficial to my two
boys, who are both very
open to new things and
new people.
August 2017 | 15