Steve Bitar is an automation advisor at ExxonMobil Research and Engineering. He has worked in refining, supply, and research, and has held a variety of engineering and management positions in a wide range of disciplines, including process control, real-time optimization, instrumentation, project development, process analytics, electrical, offline optimization and scheduling, process engineering, laboratory services, refinery coordination, and control systems. In his current role, Bitar is supporting a program to develop open systems to replace aging and obsolete distributed control system technology in refining and chemical plants. He holds a BS in chemical engineering from the Univ. of Delaware, an MS in computer science from Drexel Univ., and an MBA in finance from George Mason Univ.