As a longtime marketer with more than 20 years of experience, Eric Rosbury brings veteran wisdom to his role as a project coordinator at LaFleur. Eric joined the LaFleur team in early 2019. Prior to that, he spent 21 years at a direct marketing company in a variety of roles. As a lifelong Michigan resident, Eric loves all Michigan professional sports teams and passionately roots for the University of Michigan’s basketball and football squads.
We sat down with Eric to find out about his passion for project management and coordination, his highly unusual pick for favorite band, and why people have called him Grandpa Eric since he was barely a teenager.
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LaFleur: So, tell us about what you do here at LaFleur.
Eric Rosbury: I’m a project coordinator, so I make sure everything moves around the way it’s supposed to and make sure people have the things they need to do the jobs they have to do.
LF: And how did you get into project management?
ER: I was a project manager at my previous job for a bit. I started as production manager for a long time, which is really project managing on a basic level, and then I went to the more customer-facing project managing side.
LF: So when did you realize that project management was something you could do? I feel like it’s not something people think about when they pick their college major or anything like that.
ER: It was sort of a thing that just happened with me, and I realized it was something I was good at and that I enjoyed. I always liked finding new ways to get things done and doing whatever it took, moving people and pieces around to make things happen.
LF: How is LaFleur different from other places you’ve worked?
ER: LaFleur is just amazing. I mean, I only worked at the one place — I worked at Wendy’s in high school, and then I left there and went to school and then wound up at the place previous to here. I ended up working there for 21 years, which was not what I planned at all.
So that was really the only professional environment I’d been in, and this is a complete 180 from that. That was a real high-intensity job. Everything needed to be done yesterday, and you were never making anyone happy. Compared to that, LaFleur is such a breath of fresh air.
LF: You already have an established brand around the office. People refer to you, and I believe I’ve even heard you refer to yourself, as “Grandpa Eric.”
ER: Yes, that’s true.
LF: Can you explain the Grandpa Eric persona to me?
ER: Well, first, I really am a grandpa. I have one grandson. But also, I’ve been Grandpa Eric for 20 years probably. My friends have called me that for a long time. And it’s like — slow driver, always the person who says, “let’s just pump the brakes a minute on this situation.” I’m just sort of that sensible voice of reason amongst a group of crazier people. Someone has to do it.
LF: Now anyone who has had or overheard a music conversation with you, as I have, knows your favorite band is Clutch.
ER: Yes, most definitely.
LF: That’s not a band I hear nominated for favorite band status too often. What is it about Clutch for you?
ER: The main thing I love about Clutch is that they’re what I like to call a “thinking man’s metal or rock band.” They write songs about strange things you would never associate with that kind of band — pirates, aliens, science fiction stuff. One of their albums covered a lot of Civil War-era history. And they’re really dedicated to music. The same four guys have been together the entire time making albums and touring.
LF: And you’ve seen them live?
ER: Probably 20 times.
LF: Wow. That’s Deadhead-level stuff. Do you have a good collection of Clutch merch?
ER: I’m not so much a merch guy.
LF: Rock merch doesn’t really mesh with the Grandpa Eric brand.
ER: Right, and I’m cheap. Merch is expensive. But I do have an old-school green Clutch hoodie that’s one of my prized possessions.
LF: So outside of that, I know you have a family — you have a wife and how many kids?
ER: We have five between the two of us. We’re a blended family.
LF: And what do you guys like to do together?
ER: We like to travel when we can. We’ve been to Washington D.C. Recently, we went to Phoenix to see family. We have a 22-year-old and an 18-year-old, so they tend to do their own things most of the time. We hang out, eat food, watch sports when I can wrangle them and stop the boys from playing Fortnite — pretty normal stuff.
LF: And when you can carve out a little time for yourself, what do you like to do?
ER: I’m a big golfer. That’s my other passion for sure.
LF: What’s your handicap?
ER: I’m probably like 14 or 15.
LF: Cool. I have no idea what that means.
ER: It means I’m not a great golfer, but I love to get out there. It’s a lifelong challenge to get better, but I just enjoy being outside and appreciating that time.
LF: Anything else you want people to know about you?
ER: I don’t know. I’m pretty much an open book. I love it here at LaFleur. It’s awesome.
LF: We’re blushing.