Stephen W. Powers

Stephen (Steve) W. Powers has extensive experience in the fields of commercial and strategic planning both domestically and internationally and is currently the Vice President of Business Development for Esmark Industrial Group. Prior to his association with Esmark he was the Vice President-Strategic Planning at Wheeling Pittsburgh Steel Corporation. There he initially identified and pursued various options to strengthen and enhance WPSC’s position in the steel industry, then worked with competing acquirers to maximize the ultimate purchase price for the entity.

Before coming to Wheeling Pitt, Steve worked at United States Steel Corporation for over thirty years. At USS he had a variety of responsibilities in commercial and planning organizations including marketing, sales administration, facility planning, and strategic planning. His most recent responsibilities were in the area of strategic and market planning. Steve was part of the team that created USS’s very successful European operations, implementing an entrepreneurial commercial organization and pursuing strategic acquisitions in numerous European countries.

At U.S. Steel’s North American operations, Steve was the head of operational planning, coordinating activities for the firm’s twelve production and finishing facilities. He was the commercial lead for the company’s ERP program, designing the framework for the commercial systems. He was also responsible for economic forecasting and represented the company at industry national and international economic associations. During his USS career he also handled marketing responsibilities for the automotive, service center, and construction industries.

While primarily living and working in Pittsburgh, Steve has also spent time in Chicago and four years in Europe. He is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh with degrees in Economics and Business and is a Certified Management Accountant.