October Employee Spotlight: Meet Ben Ruchte
At IXRF Systems, our culture is powered by our people. Today, we shine a light on Ben, a true asset to our team, whose passion, skills, and unwavering commitments consistently impact our company’s journey.
What is your role at IXRF?
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- My role, plain and simple, is to make both external and internal stakeholders successful. We have a product I strongly believe in, a technology I’ve worked with for years in the failure analysis field, dating back to my co-op days with Dominion in Richmond, VA. I’ve always enjoyed wearing many hats throughout my career, and at IXRF, it’s no different. Currently, I lead our Applications division, oversee product adoption and usage, and work to foster strong relationships with our customers. Another fun aspect of my role is collaborating closely with cross-functional teams, including product development, engineering, software, and the commercial team, to ensure effective product engagement strategies and customer success.
What’s something most people don’t know about you?
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- I have two answers for this one! My middle name is just the letter ‘Q’ – No period! My paternal grandfather’s first name was Quentin, but everyone calls him Grandpa Q, so my parents stuck with that… trust me, it’s caused a ruckus over the years (good and bad). The second is that I played water polo in high school and college. I must be transparent, though: my wife played Division I water polo at the University of Maryland, while I ‘just’ played club at Purdue.
What are your professional goals?
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- At a basic level, I want to be involved in making an organization thrive. I firmly believe it’s pretty simple: bring enthusiasm and show humility. While I’m technically a licensed professional engineer, I find that I thoroughly enjoy trying to bring a ‘human element’ to our customers and, in turn, reiterate that ‘element’ back inside the organization. It’s a long-winded way of saying I’ll work to do whatever is best for an organization, but I am not shy about pushing for more responsibility.
How does IXRF help you achieve those goals?
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- Ultimate flexibility and a fun culture. IXRF is fast-paced and exciting! You rarely get the opportunity to work in a field that is instrumental (no pun intended!) in helping our customers push technical boundaries to better our world. Looking simply at our Applications backlog, we have various samples ranging from human tissue –> plants –> rocks/concrete –> solar cells –> antique wood from musical instruments, as examples! I’ve found that being involved in many different aspects of the company, I’ve grown immensely, both personally and professionally.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
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- I enjoy spending time with my wife and kids (Theo – 5.5 and Faye – 3.5)! Spare time? I am slightly obsessed with longevity, so I always try my best to stay healthy and active. We’ve built a garage gym, so I’m out there most mornings, and I’ve found that it’s a great way to get my day going!
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