In the suburbs of Chicago, a young Adam Field stands at the pitcher's mound staring down the batter. With his team behind him, spectators in his peripherals and his father - and coach - watching intently from the sidelines, Adam feels the pressure settle on his shoulders. On this island alone, the tension and anticipation are palpable yet thrilling for Adam. While he depends on his skills and strength to bring home the win, it's the reassurance of a team ready to support him that makes the island disappear.
Adam's passion for helping others, being a dependable teammate and the thrill of achieving something that sparks joy in those around him has never faded. They're guiding principles engrained in him since childhood that have followed him throughout the key stages and milestones of his life, and well into his decade-long career at Cummins Inc.
His path to becoming and serving as a trusted advisor and mentor among his peers at Cummins wasn't always an easy one, though. Having studied marketing and received his degree from the University of Kentucky, coming into the work of engine technology wasn't obvious for someone like Adam, he shares.
"You look at Cummins from the outside in and you go, 'It's an engineering company. They only do engines. You have to be an engineer to work there,'" Adam recalls. "I showed up not necessarily knowing how an engine worked, which is surprising and also terrifying at the same time."
Adam admits the first couple of years were daunting and fed into imposter syndrome, given the perception by many that Cummins is predominantly an engine company. He spent those years diving deep into understanding the business, eager to learn and quickly began building his technical knowledge to complement his marketing background. Before long, Adam's ability to translate complex technical concepts enabled him to become a bridge between engineering expertise and customer understanding, much of which he attributes to the culture of Cummins.
"I quickly was able to develop skills and get the right understanding," he says. "A lot of that is because I was able to turn toward people in the company to act as a mentor towards me and help me learn."
Yet, despite his initial reservations, Adam knew Cummins was the right place for him. Cummins shared the same values of diverse and global perspectives Adam has been raised around and sought his whole life.
“I grew up with two adopted siblings from South Korea. There was always something as I was growing up that was a little bit different from a cultural standpoint,” he shares.
Adam had pursued study abroad programs at university, participating in the University of Kentucky’s Global Scholar’s program that gave him international culture and business exposure; yet it was Cummins that showed him just how many differences could thrive at one company.
For Adam, diversity is not solely a core value for Cummins employees but ultimately a key facet of the business and the need to support a wide variety of customers. From the big corporations to mom-and-pop shops, all depend on the company to provide reliable products that help them get their job done. Adam's role today shapes how Cummins communicates its journey towards reduced emissions products.
As the company navigates the energy transition, developing alternative power solutions through its Destination Zero ™ strategy, Adam helps customers understand and embrace change while acknowledging their concerns.
"Typically, change can be frightening to a customer," he explains. "What my team focuses on is finding the value in all our products and really trying to develop that story - the messaging of how we should be talking about these engines - what is the reason someone would want to put this in their truck and use it every day?"
Communicating a product that can be viewed from multiple different angles with messaging that successfully resonates with a large audience is not an easy task. Adam's decade of experience and network of his mentors, advisors and subject matter experts has continued to support him. Today, however, he finds himself becoming the mentor to new Cummins employees and colleagues he once sought himself.
Adam can easily break down complicated concepts, engineering lingo and the technical jargon of a product without judgment for the person asking. You can ask a question, rephrase it and ask again, and Adam will listen patiently, fine-tuning how to describe the answer to ensure someone understands - and doesn't leave until they do.
For many colleagues facing similar reservations about whether they know enough about Cummins, combating imposter syndrome like he once had, Adam's approachability makes overcoming the fear of asking seemingly silly, surface-level questions less challenging. He'll set aside time to walk through presentations, review diagrams and renderings of engines to solidify your questions or, in the rare instance he doesn't have the answer, is quick to connect you to the next best person.
"Answering those questions and seeing people developing in their role, you can see that click of 'it all makes sense now to me!' It just reminds me of being in the same situation as that person," he says. "I can relate to it, but now I'm on the other side where I'm able to help them get to a point where they feel confident in their abilities at work."
Now a new father, Adam finds meaning not only in mentoring Cummins colleagues but also in the company's environmental mission. "Being able to see and feel that impact, it's really important to me," he shares. "Especially with having a new kid, raising a new family, just setting up a world of change and a world that she can grow up in, and make that impact to say, 'I was at Cummins when we did this.'"
Whether he's explaining engine specifications to customers, mentoring new team members, or spending time with his family, Adam embodies the caring and collaborative spirit that drives Cummins forward. As he looks to the future, he sees beyond the technical innovations.
"At the end of the day, the engine we're putting out at Cummins is there to help support somebody else's business. That person is using our engine as a tool to succeed and put food on the table for their family," Adam says. "I see that downstream effect we have at Cummins, and that's really what gets me excited to work here."
