Kurt Knipp has been named chief operating officer (COO) at ESD (Environmental Systems Design, Inc.).

In his new position, Mr. Knipp will be responsible for leading ESD’s day-to-day operations. He has over 30 years of experience with a diverse background in executive management and consulting for a wide variety of domestic and international companies.

“ESD’s vision for the future includes growth initiatives in all of our core markets, expanding services to our existing customer base and entering new markets,” stated Raj Gupta, ESD’s CEO. “To achieve this vision and stay ahead of our competitors we need to attract and retain top talent, exceed customer expectations, improve operating efficiencies and achieve a superior cost structure. Kurt is a seasoned leader in managing performance improvement and he will play a key role in ESD’s future.” 

Prior to joining ESD, Mr. Knipp was managing director at Lake Pointe Partners LLC, a Chicago-based boutique performance improvement consulting practice that he co-founded in 2004. He has led and managed complex performance improvement and advisory assignments for middle market companies with annual revenues of $30-$400 million. Mr. Knipp has also provided interim C-level leadership for companies in the manufacturing, distribution, and business services industries.

Mr. Knipp holds a bachelor of science degree in computer science and finance from Northern Illinois University.