Peipei Zhao ’09 (MS in Applied Natural Resource Economics) has been named a 2024 Notable Champion of Diversity by Automotive News. Zhao is president of North America for Robosense, a leader in robotics technology platforms.
From Automotive News
From the moment he set foot in the U.S., Peipei Zhao felt a pressure to “Americanize” himself. When he arrived as an international master’s student at Michigan Technological University, he considered adopting an English name — perhaps Jeff — to help him fit in but ultimately chose to keep his Chinese name.
“Everybody should be themselves first, then people can bring their backgrounds together and work with each other for the best results,” Zhao said.
Zhao, 42, is relieved he kept his name. Beyond maintaining an important part of his identity, it has sparked conversations and connections with international clients in his role as president of North America for Robosense, a Chinese lidar developer providing artificial intelligence-powered sensors, chips and hardware to global automakers and Tier 1 suppliers.
Since taking the helm as president in 2022, Zhao has found that cross-cultural collaboration is crucial to the company’s success.
Zhao led Robosense in securing a deal with Lucid Motors for its lidar technology. After some initial communication and cultural challenges between international teams, Zhao partnered with a suburban Detroit supplier, streamlining mass production. He also enhanced communication among their Shanghai, Michigan and California offices.
“We’re looking for businesses that bring different DNA to our supply chain,” Zhao said. “Robosense isn’t staying in its comfort zone by relying only on Chinese-speaking or China-based suppliers.”
Zhao has incorporated diversity, equity and inclusion through other initiatives, such as a dual-mentor system, pairing new hires with a senior employee, helping them adapt quickly.
“Having a common understanding between the teams and headquarters is so important,” he said.
The turnover rate at the North America branch is 50 percent lower than the rest of the company globally, and the female employee rate is approximately 40 percent.
Zhao first learned about DE&I and corporate social responsibility in Harvard scholar Christa Walck’s class at Michigan Tech. He still feels a strong connection to his alma mater and helped found its Advisory Board for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Sense of Belonging in 2021. He also created the Global Elite Bridge Scholarship, which offers rotating scholarships to domestic and international students — a fund he hopes supports the continued expanding diversity of the student body.