SAGINAW, Mich. — Mike Stickel will become president and CEO of Lake State Railway, and current president and CEO John Rickoff will become chairman of the board of directors, as part of leadership changes announced today (June 18) by the Michigan-based regional railroad.
The changes are effective July 15. Stickel is currently executive vice president and chief operating officer; that role will be filled by Mark Rosner. Also, executive vice president and chief financial officer Kevin Mitrzyk will assume an expanded role as chief administrative officer, adding human resources and government affairs functions.
Stickel joined Lake State in 2013 from Watco, where he was a regional marketing vice president. He had previously held positions with the Indiana Rail Road and equipment leasing companies including Helm Financial Corp. and CIT Group. Rosner comes to Lake State from Carload Express Inc., where he was president and CEO; he has previously held positions with Wisconsin Central, CSX, and BNSF, as well as railways in Europe and Australia, and in investment banking, infrastructure investing, and consulting. Mitrzyk joined Lake State as an accountant in February 1993, and was promoted to controller in November of that year. He became chief financial officer in 2003 and was promoted to executive vice president in 2018.
Rickoff became CEO in 2010, just months after joining Lake State. His railroading career includes time with Chicago & North Western, Soo Line, Canadian Pacific, and the Indiana Rail Road.
The railroad operates approximately 375 track-miles and handles about 60,000 carloads with a fleet of 35 locomotives. It has 145 employees and is owned by Antin Infrastructure Partners.
