James is a 2001 graduate of Purdue University with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering and minor in political science. During the course of his career at Purdue, James was heavily involved in extracurricular activities including that of the reestablishment of the Chi Chapter of Kappa Sigma. At the beginning of the colonization process in 2000, James was elected Colony Grand Master and served through the rechartering until January 2001. He also served as a Senator for Purdue Student Government in addition to student body Chief of Staff during his senior year. Additionally, James had the honor of holding several officerships through Purdue student organizations including Tau Beta Pi (Treasurer), Omega Chi Epsilon (Advisor), Phi Sigma Pi (Chairman) in addition to being Kappa Sigma and Merck Pharmaceuticals Scholar.
After graduation, James joined Mobil Oil Corporation as an engineer in their refining division based out of Chicago, IL. James served in many technical and operational roles within refining, moving from process engineering to operations management between 2001 and 2007. During this time, he attended the University of Chicago in a Masters of Business program focusing on finance and strategy.
In 2003, James was married to Jill Schlotterback (Purdue sweetheart)
with an additional family member arriving in February 2007, Abigail Shively. Later that same year, James joined BP as Midwest Business Development Manager focusing on merger & acquisition activity. In 2008, he moved in a role as Integrated Strategy Manager with a focus on competitively positioning BP in the Midwest. In mid-2009, James moved into the role of Director for the Refinery of the Future program based out of Naperville, IL where he leads teams of engineers and scientists dedicated to taking BP’s global refining business to the next level.
James resides in Lisle, IL with his wife Jill, daughter Abigail and recent addition Lucas, his two month-old son. He is actively involved with the Purdue President’s Council, BP-Purdue engineering recruiting, Chicago GSB Dean’s Club, various civic organizations and is an avid Boilermaker fan.
