WAM

 As the co-founder and general partner of REFASHIOND Ventures, the co-founder of The Worldwide Supply Chain Federation, and the founder of the New York Fashion Tech Lab, Lisa Morales-Hellebo’s life has always been closely tied to technology.   

 At REFASHIOND, Lisa works to help companies reframe their supply chain processes and goals to keep up with global, socio-cultural demands. Her extensive knowledge has already helped numerous companies use supply chain innovation to drive higher output and sales, and better optimize and personalize the supply chain experience for customers. Fusing together her years of experience, Lisa also co-wrote and published The World is a Supply Chain. 

 Lisa’s successes were also preceded by hardships that she believes have shaped her story. As a young child growing up in Westchester County, Lisa, who is a proud Latino, was aware of the gender and racially driven division that existed within her community. This transformed Lisa’s perspective and led to her passion for positively emphasizing diversity. 

 Today, Lisa continues to act on her passions as an advocate for organizations that help minorities gain access to opportunities for funding, championship, and growth. She also serves on multiple advisory boards, has been featured in numerous publications and media outlets, and was named of one of the top 100 women in supply chain for two years in a row by Supply Chain Digital. 

 Based on her impressive credentials alone, it’s clear that entrepreneurship, technology, supply chain, and activism are all a part of Lisa’s DNA — and she plans on keeping it that way. 

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As companies grow from national to international, private to public, so does their tendency to apply increased layers of bureaucracy and rigid hierarchical structures, often accompanied by a death knell for innovation. In today’s episode Frances Brunelle, The President of Accelerated Manufacturing Brokers inc. speaks with Sheryl Corrigan, the Director of Environmental Health and Safety at Koch Industries, about what sets their company apart from other companies of its size. Sheryl explains how Koch’s founding principles of experimentation and entrepreneurship continue to guide the company in pursuing disruptive technologies as well as the competitive advantage that comes with manufacturing. Listeners can expect to hear Sheryl break down exactly how Koch empowers its employees and provide them with opportunities to share their insights and rise through the ranks. We also discuss how disruption can be a disaster, additive manufacturing, and why Sheryl prefers to do business with private companies. For all this and more, join us today!

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The world of startup funding is an exciting and sometimes overwhelming arena to enter. Here on the WAM podcast today, Rosemary Coates interviews Christine Howard, who is the founder and CEO of E.B. Howard Consulting as well as StartupFundHub.com! In her work, Christine helps startups find and apply for non-dilutive funding and she gives a helpful explanation of dilutive funding, how it works, and why they steer away from it. We have a great conversation about the ins and outs of the industry, and our guest does a brilliant job of simplifying some potentially daunting queries, while also underlining the volatility and unpredictability that comes with seeking capital. We talk about useful tools and strategies, with Christine emphasizing the need for thoroughly-checked writing and well-managed timeframes around deadlines! The conversation also covers ethics, and our guest makes the simple point that staying on the right side of the law is imperative to your future success. Listeners can also expect to hear Christine’s thoughts on looking for funding right now, whether it is a good time or not, and what the next year or two might look like with a rise in post-COVID funds. Tune in hear it all!

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Our guest on today’s show is a woman in manufacturing with a PhD in material science and a passion for gender related issues, so much so that she has written two books on the subject. Tanushree moved to the United States to study because she wanted to have freedom of choice that she didn’t feel she had as a woman in her home country, India. She ended up in the manufacturing world completely by accident but she is very glad that she did, for reasons that she shares with us today. Tanu has a deep drive to enhance gender equality and help other women understand their worth. Our conversation delves into the ways in which women are underrepresented and undervalued in the workplace and Tanu shares advice on how we can start to change this. We discuss the importance of learning how to communicate your desires, not taking criticism personally, and always supporting other women on the journey they are on, even if it is different to your own. As women, we are often made to feel like we don’t belong in certain fields or positions, but that narrative is false, and as Tanu urges, “never undervalue yourself.” Don’t miss out on this inspirational episode!

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There are so many elements that go into the operationalizing of a manufacturing company. One of the biggest challenges experienced by manufacturing companies is “making sure they have the right product in the right place at the right time.” If you don’t have this under control it can result in a waste of time and money, but luckily there is a company that has the solution to this problem, and most of your other problems too. Tracy Coon joins us on the show today to explain how Blue Ridge, her software company, helps manufacturing companies optimize their processes, understand and utilize their data, and manage multiple locations. Tracy also talks us through one of her favorite real-world examples of how the Blue Ridge systems improved the processes of a particular company and the positive changes that the company saw as a result. If you think your company’s processes need a revamp, you have come to the right place!

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While women in the U.S. receive more than 50% of college degrees each year, they remain largely absent from executive leadership positions. As a female leader who successfully ran Planned Parenthood at regional and national levels, best-selling author, and co-founder of Take the Lead, Gloria Feldt continues her lifelong mission – to help prepare, develop, inspire, and propel women to take their fair and equal share of leadership positions across all sectors by 2025. She’s doing this by providing breakthrough training, mentoring and coaching, and thought leadership.

Gloria is truly a master juggler – managing senior leadership roles while raising a family of three during a time when women were encouraged to stay at home. In this time she managed to write four best-selling books; the latest being No Excuses: 9 Ways Women Can Change How We Think About Power.

In this episode, Gloria shares her personal and professional journey. Although she has tried her hand at many things over her successful 30-year career, the common thread of advancing women’s rights underpins it all. We discuss the gendered nature of our relationship to power and how internalized inferiority is the first thing women have to overcome if they are to get into top positions.

Learn more about Gloria’s organization Take The Lead and how they are helping women around the country change how they think of power and how best to deal with the implicit biases they face.

Listen to the entire conversation here on the WAM podcast. Hearing Gloria Feldt is like a master class in female empowerment!

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To have a happy and empowered workforce, you need to have a good foundation, a good company culture, and a healthy garden from which to grow your people and your business. Today’s guest is Karen Norheim, who is the President of American Crane, an Equipment Corporation, with three locations in Pennsylvania, totaling over a quarter of a million square feet. She is a second-generation leader in the company and, during her tenure, she has sought to solidify the founder’s legacy, while also putting her own stamp on the company culture. Karen also sits on a number of boards for industry-leading organizations. In this episode, you hear from her who American Crane is, and she shares her opinion on the importance of solidifying company culture, why you need to put emphasis on having a happy and empowered workforce, and how that has changed over time. She also talks about how she is working towards changing the narrative around a career in manufacturing, the importance of marketing and social media, and so much more. Make sure you tune in today!

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Logistics – particularly trucking is a male-dominated world. No one knows that better than Kristy Knichel, President of Knichel Logistics. Kristy is a fearless leader who grew her family business into a major industry player. Nothing was handed to her. Kristy worked for years in just about every area of the company including marketing, sales, HR and finance, where she honed her skills and officially took the helm in 2009. One of her greatest lessons came early on from her family where she learned the value of hard work and independence.

Thanks to Kristy, the company has received numerous awards including Inc Magazine’s top 500 businesses for 5 years; and 7x by the Pittsburgh Business Times (PBT) as “Best Places to Work”. PBT also recognized Knichel Logistics as the fastest growing business, and “Business Women First” company in the area. 

Knichel Logistics’ list of industry recognitions reads like a “who’s who” in awards, but ask anyone and they’ll tell you Kristy is most proud of the incredible team she has built. She strongly believes in empowering women to take on leadership roles whether it’s women she brings up the ladder at her company or others she mentors. Kristy has taken the company from $2 million to $80 million in sales, and is excited to grow even more – especially during the COVID pandemic.

Hear more as Kristy shares with Linda Rigano her personal and professional journey.

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Divya Demato is a rock star in the supply chain community. She has mastered the practice of merging supply chain sustainability with profitability — no easy task in today’s economic landscape. Early on, Divya’s mother – a key role model – instilled in her a strong work ethic, authenticity, entrepreneurship, and a deep bond for her family. 

When asked the best advice she ever got, Divya quickly pointed to the importance of gratitude. Divya had some empowering mentors throughout her career managing e-commerce operations for Mercantela, Walmart and One Kings Lane. Being selfless and always asking key questions such as: “What’s going on in my supply chain?” and “How can I impact the lives of women?” can improve both your personal and professional accountability.

Divya founded GoodOps, a supply chain consultancy partnering with companies to architect, accelerate and scale sustainable operations. Divya is proud of her work to establish fair labor standards for factory workers and piloting advanced technologies to improve environmental impact.

Divya shares her exciting journey here with WAM Podcasts’ co-host Linda Rigano.

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Manufacturing is an amazing career choice and people seem not to understand that they can have a wonderful life taking up a career in this industry. Our guest today is passionate about informing kids and their parents that just because you go into a trade and start working right out of high school, does not mean that you lose the opportunity to go to college. More often than not, employers like herself want to invest in their employees and companies. Today, we welcome to the show, Kristin Carlson, who is President of Peerless Precision, Inc. in Westfield, Massachusetts. Peerless is a small, precision machine shop specializing in the manufacturing of complex mechanical components, mainly for the aerospace and defense industries. Kristin is the previous president of the Western Massachusetts chapter of the National Tooling and Machining Association. She also currently serves as trustee, a member of the board, and sits on advisory/steering committees for Westfield Technical Academy’s Manufacturing Program, West Springfield High School’s Pathways to Prosperity Program, Agawam High School’s Manufacturing Program, and Forge. Kristin has extensive experience in purchasing, sales, supply chain management, and operations management. She is extremely passionate when it comes to changing the outdated narrative that encompasses manufacturing, bringing more women into manufacturing, and educating students on the many career paths and opportunities that are available in advanced manufacturing. Stay tuned for this insightful conversation as we hear all about it from Kristin herself in today’s episode.

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