Melanie Margolin. Courtesy photo.

Wabash National Corp. announced on Wednesday the hire of Melanie Margolin, an attorney with international experience, as its senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary.

Dick Giromini, CEO of the manufacturer and producer of semitrailers and liquid transportation systems, said in the announcement of Margolin's hire that he is pleased to welcome her to the company.

“Her diverse legal experience, business acumen, and track record of collaboration and building great teams will be an integral part of our leadership structure. She also brings a demonstrated commitment to diversity and inclusion, which aligns with our focus on organizational development and talent management at all levels of the workforce,” Giromini said.

Margolin, who started her role April 30, comes to Wabash National where from Cummins Inc., a manufacturing company, where she was deputy general counsel. She said she is excited to join the Wabash team due in part to its plans for business growth and its focus on diversity.

“Wabash National's leadership also includes the legal function as a proactive partner in the business, which is a great fit for my skills and work style. I'm looking forward to learning the business, while hopefully adding value right away from my previous experiences,” Margolin said in an emailed statement.

In her new role, according to the hiring announcement, Margolin will oversee all of the Lafayette, Indiana-based company's global legal affairs, including corporate, commercial, regulatory, intellectual property, ethics, compliance and litigation.

Margolin replaces Erin Roth who, according to Roth's LinkedIn profile, left Wabash in December to become the executive vice president, general counsel and secretary of Strada Education Network, a national nonprofit dedicated to strengthening pathways between education and employment.

After graduating from DePaul University College of Law in 1997, Margolin became an associate at Alholm, Monahan, Klauke, Hay & Oldenburg in Chicago, followed by 13 years at Frost Brown Todd. She joined Cummins in April 2013, where in addition to serving as deputy GC, she was lead global lawyer for Latin America and part of the company's Legal Function and Business Unit Leadership.

Margolin previously spoke to Modern Counsel about transforming the global litigation strategy at Cummins as the company grew. She said her methods included using Six Sigma techniques to identify problems and potential solutions. Part of her strategy was assigning members of the global legal department to work with regional in-house counsel every time an issue arose.