Mercer University equipped Katie (Wetherholt) Davis with the curiosity and skill set to take her engineering career in any direction. She has taken on roles in a variety of industries over the past 28 years, and she’s currently the vice president and chief technology officer for Honeywell’s commercial fire division.
Davis, a 1998 graduate of the School of Engineering, grew up in Huntington, West Virginia, and Savannah, Georgia. She knew early on that she wanted to be an engineer, and Mercer’s personal approach stood out as she toured colleges.
“I knew that I was going to be supported and feel supported in my career decisions and in my learning,” said Davis, who lives in Charlotte, North Carolina. “I felt like, ‘When I leave here, 20 years later I bet my professors will remember my name.’ And they do. That to me was the coolest part about it. It had a big school feel, but then it had this family-type environment where everybody cared about everybody else. We weren’t just a number. (The professors) were truly 100% invested in our success, at school and then in the future.”
Davis’ physics lab partner, Dr. Joseph Davis, CLAS, ’98, became her Mercer sweetheart, and they got married shortly after graduating and moved to Augusta. As her new husband earned his medical degree at Medical College of Georgia, Katie Davis worked at engineering firm Bechtel, where her focus was engineering design projects for environmental remediation on a nuclear facility. When they moved back to Macon for her husband’s medical residency, Davis became a weld engineer for ground support equipment at Robins Air Force Base.
Three years later, she joined the engineering team at heating, ventilation and air conditioning manufacturer Trane. She worked her way up to leadership roles across the company, experiencing its purchase by Ingersoll Rand and the eventual spinoff of its industrial segment into Trane Technologies. Along the way, she also earned her Master of Business Administration from Indiana University and had two children, who are now grown. She concluded her tenure with Trane Technologies as vice president and chief technology officer of residential HVAC and supply in July 2024.
“I had been in HVAC for 18 years and learned a lot, but I was really just ready to learn something new,” Davis said. “I think that’s one of the things I learned at Mercer. I was always learning. I’m just not a status quo person.”
As she contemplated her next professional chapter, technologies manufacturer Honeywell reached out about a position as chief technology officer for its commercial fire business. Drawn to the company’s work designing detective and responsive fire safety systems, Davis started the job in September 2024.
“The thing that really struck me about it was that it made such an impact on the world. I like to take roles that bring value and that have a real impact,” she said. “I have really embraced what it means about keeping people safe. … At Honeywell, I feel like everything I do, no matter how little or small, it’s impacting somebody’s life.”
Davis oversees all research and development activities for Honeywell’s commercial fire business, with a team of 700-plus engineers worldwide contributing to projects. Resource and talent development is a big part of her work, and she enjoys communicating with customers to better understand their needs.
“I focus on having the right people in the right role. I focus on execution,” she said. “Most engineering leaders basically run a design factory. You’re designing products or systems in order to deliver something to an end customer. For me, it’s about making sure we’re delivering the right products to our customers, that they’re quality and innovative, and that we’re able to grow that business.”
Davis loves that her job with Honeywell is global, and it has allowed her to travel the world.
“It’s really about bringing people together. You’re working on a giant project team, and you have to kind of push these things forward. I love learning about the different cultures and embracing them,” she said.
Davis never thought she’d work in fire safety, but now she’s two years into a job in this industry that is bringing her great fulfillment. She credits Mercer for teaching her to be inquisitive and open to new opportunities and showing her how to communicate effectively, all of which have been pivotal to her career growth.
Outside her Honeywell work, Davis evaluates university engineering programs nationwide for the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. She also is involved in the Society of Women Engineers and is an active member of Mercer’s National Engineering Advisory Board, which helps ensure the University’s engineering programs stay up to date and relevant.
“Mercer does a fantastic job involving a broad industry group to provide feedback,” she said. “I think it’s important to hear that feedback from industry on where we see our talent going and what we’re looking for in order to evolve curriculum and make sure (Mercer is) meeting the needs of industry. Ultimately, we want our students to get jobs and be productive members of society. I’ve enjoyed being involved and providing that voice of the industry.
When Davis talks to future engineers, she urges them not to limit themselves to certain industries or roles.
“For students out there, let your eyes be open to other things, the possibilities, because you’re getting a great tool set at Mercer,” she said. “You’re going to be able to do anything and everything you want to do, if you put the time and effort into your studies and really take advantage of what Mercer has to offer.”
Davis also points out to budding engineers that they don’t have to choose between work and family; they can do both, like she did. She has kept her family as her priority and made choices based on those needs, while also advancing in her career. And she’s not done with that career growth just yet.
“I’m looking forward to future roles with Honeywell doing even more things. I certainly have not reached my peak yet of what I want to learn and do as an engineer,” she said.
