> Dick Neumann Named Recipient of the 2024 ERA Lifetime Achievement Award

The Electronics Representatives Association (ERA) is pleased and honored to announce that Dick Neumann, former vice president at Grayhill, Inc., has been named the 2024 recipient of the ERA Lifetime Achievement Award.

The award will be presented to Neumann at February’s ERA Conference in Austin, Texas, in recognition of his service to the electronics industry.

The Lifetime Achievement Award was created to recognize individuals who play an integral role in supporting the manufacturers’ representative model in the electronics industry.

Neumann retired from Grayhill, Inc. in August 2022 after 47 years of service to the company.

After graduating from TCU in 1962, he started working at Grigsby as a purchasing agent. From there, he joined the sales rep firm Hill Gray, where he was first introduced to Grayhill products. Dick was recruited to Grayhill in 1976 as the western regional sales manager. Over his career in sales, he held the roles of national sales manager, vice president of sales and marketing and vice president of special projects.

“Dick started his career as a manufacturers’ rep at Hill Gray,” said Walter Tobin, CEO of ERA. “That’s where his passion and commitment to the rep function started and was carried over once he joined Grayhill. Dick’s 40-plus year career with Grayhill was a testament to his ability to manage and motivate his rep network by creating an atmosphere of collaboration, hard work and a bit of fun. His dedication to family, Grayhill and our industry is what drove Dick right up to his retirement. He has been a mentor to so many of us. ERA is proud to recognize Dick with this Lifetime Achievement Award.”

“It’s a special time in one’s life when he receives a special award for doing what he loves,” said Neumann. “For the last 50 years, ERA has helped me build relationships with our representatives, with other manufacturers and with distributors. It has been said that a successful man learns from his mistakes. These relationships helped me not only learn from my mistakes but also from my peers’ mistakes. Tim Coakley once told me if he took one idea home from an ERA conference, it was a successful conference. I know I have taken more knowledge from my peers than I have given. I have many people to thank from the more than 59 years in the industry that I love.”