Mike Altendorf

Altendorf will fill the position of the retiring Kay Williams, who has worked for the hardware and lumber buying co-op for more than 31 years. In this position, Altendorf will be responsible for all IT-related programs and will be responsible for the strategic leadership of IT and the implementation of technologies that support Do it Best Corp. initiatives. 

Altendorf joined the company in March as the director of IT business planning and architecture. He was previously employed for 22 years at another hardware co-op, with the last five of those years serving as the vice president of IT. He was also employed at Flexco, a global manufacturer and wholesaler of products for belt conveyors, where he served as the director of IT.

“Mike has a wealth of knowledge and experience in IT and small business consulting,” said Bob Taylor, Do it Best Corp. president and CEO. “He understands the company and our industry and will be integral to a number of our key strategic initiatives. We are fortunate to have him join our leadership team.”

Altendorf was on the faculty at Northern Illinois University and served on the Economic Restructuring Committee of the Batavia (IL) Main Street Program (an organization that promotes economic vitality and historic preservation for downtowns). He now resides in Fort Wayne with his wife.

Tim Miller

Miller will assume the position held by Bill Zielke, who will be retiring after 12 years with Do it Best Corp. In this position, Miller will be responsible for the advertising, retail programs, store design, exclusive brand packaging, and communications-related activities of the co-op.

Miller joined the company in 1993 as a retail data processing specialist after four years at IBM, and he has worked in a variety of positions of increasing responsibility in information technology, marketing and logistics. In 1999, as the retail logistics manager, he co-managed the development and launch of the company’s Warehouse Management System (WMS). He segued into marketing in 2004 as the retail marketing manager and was instrumental in growing member and vendor success with the ADpak advertising program and also directed the implementation of several technology related initiatives.

“Tim has the advantage of having worked in many facets of our organization,” said Bob Taylor, Do it Best Corp. president and CEO. “He has a tremendous depth of understanding into our operations, and we know his insight will be invaluable to our organization in his new leadership position.”

Miller is a graduate of Indiana University-Purdue University at Fort Wayne (IPFW). He is a current member of the Fort Wayne Leadership Forum, the Ivy Tech Office Administration Advisory Committee and the Fort Wayne Airport Air Service Committee. He resides in Fort Wayne.

Based in Fort Wayne, Ind., Do it Best Corp. is the only U.S.-based, member-owned hardware, lumber and building materials buying cooperative in the home improvement industry. With annual sales of $2.46 billion, Do it Best Corp. is the second largest co-op in the industry, serving 4,100 member-owned stores in the United States and in 46 foreign countries.