Joll Development
Business Consultant and Chief Operating Officer
CLASS OF 1977
Paul Medvedo is an entrepreneur who helped launch the franchise concept for Quaker Steak & Lube, one of the earliest sports-themed pub chains in the country. But he does not stop with developing exciting restaurants. Today, Medvedo spends most of his time as a business consultant working with companies like Westinghouse, where he advises on matters of supply chain management for their nuclear power initiatives.
From a first-generation college student in his family to a successful business executive, Paul Medvedo believes Washington & Jefferson College provided him with personal growth opportunities and intellectual challenges to build a solid foundation for a bright future. "My experience at W&J greatly improved my ability to see issues from new perspectives, ask better questions, and make better judgments," he recalls. Medvedo also appreciated that the College's convenient location outside Pittsburgh allowed him to "get away"—but not too far away—from friends and family, encouraging him to develop lifelong friendships on campus.
It was in his economics courses at W&J where Medvedo realized his calling in the business world. "After Econ 101, I was hooked," he remembers. After earning a master's in business administration, he was recruited by Westinghouse as a construction buyer, eventually earning a promotion to director for global sourcing and logistics, the top corporate purchasing job at the company. Medvedo continued his purchasing career as an executive director at Consolidated Natural Gas, which merged with Dominion Resources. There, as vice president of supply chain management, he developed, implemented, and managed a supply chain with more than 1,000 employees and $2.5 billion in annual expenditures.
Looking back on his career, Medvedo maintains that his W&J education has played, and continues to play, a valuable role in his success. "My degree from W&J always has been and still is recognized as a personal asset within the business community," he says. He advises students to "absorb the entire college experience" at W&J and urges, "Don't miss the opportunity to develop as a person—your person."
