Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • European Rubber Journal
  • Plastics News
web
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • ITEC
    • Automotive
    • Tire
    • Non-Tire
    • Suppliers
    • Silicone
    • Latex
    • Coronavirus
    • Executive Action
    • Government/Legal
    • Opinion
    • Technical Notebooks
    • International Elastomer Show
    • Women in Tire & Rubber
    • HEXPOL Sponsored Content
    • Goodyear recognized by Lockheed Martin as 'elite supplier'
      EV tire advancements to help secure future
      Lambillotte: Only question on AVs is timing
      CAR official says EV future brighter than autonomous
    • Motion Industries rebrands as 'Motion'
      USW opposes Taiwan tire makers' dumping counterproposal
      Goodyear-branded transmission belts set to return
      Hot topics at virtual CES: AVs, air taxis and drones
    • USW opposes Taiwan tire makers' dumping counterproposal
      Greenergy, Haldor Topsoe tech turns tires to fuel
      India decides against extending carbon black duties
      GRI expanding ag tire capacity at 3-year-old Sri Lanka plant
    • Motion Industries rebrands as 'Motion'
      Proto Labs to buy e-commerce company 3D Hubs for $280 million
      NewAge Industries celebrates 15 years of employee ownership
      India decides against extending carbon black duties
    • Tero Peltomaki named Cimcorp CEO
      Nynas expects to be stronger after reorganization
      Synthomer CEO MacLean to step down by early 2022
      Safic-Alcan and Arkema working together on distribution deal
    • Proto Labs to buy e-commerce company 3D Hubs for $280 million
      Ace Products & Consulting partners with Wallace Instruments
      Safic-Alcan extends distribution agreement with Momentive
      Momentive aims to grow silicone presence in Asia-Pacific region
    • WCCO task force navigates pandemic, expands communications
      ASTM cancels April meetings as COVID-19 continues impact
      Paycheck Protection Program funding reopens Jan. 15
      Detroit Auto Show canceled; alternative event being planned for September
    • Tero Peltomaki named Cimcorp CEO
      Synthomer CEO MacLean to step down by early 2022
      ARP Materials adds technical sales manager
      Jack Murphy joins Akron Dispersions
    • USW opposes Taiwan tire makers' dumping counterproposal
      India decides against extending carbon black duties
      Hot topics at virtual CES: AVs, air taxis and drones
      Paycheck Protection Program funding reopens Jan. 15
    • Column: Pandemic looms over everything in life, business in 2020
      Column: Lessons from the 2020 Best Places to Work
      Editorial: Silicone hit hard by pandemic, expected to bounce back
      Column: Still far way from normal
    • Effects of multiple repurposed materials for reinforcements of standard rubber compounds
      Impact of peroxide blends on the cure rate and aged properties in HNBR
      Techniques to detect long chain branching in polymers
      A comparative study looking at effects of curing kinetics and batch variation on SBR injection molding and numerical analytics
    • Rubber Division seeks abstracts for 200th Technical Meeting
      WORD panelists say evolution, authenticity keys to success
      IEC keynote: Communication key to logistics
      IEC speaker: Specialized elastomers may reduce spread of life-threatening pathogens
    • WORD panelists say evolution, authenticity keys to success
      New video celebrates women in rubber industry
      ITEC panelists say women can thrive in tire industry
      Rubber Division planning second Women of Rubber event
    • Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Faster Access to Your Polymer Compounding Experts Around the World
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Take a walk thru a HEXPOL Lab
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      HEXPOL offers a unique selection of High Performance Elastomers to match your application requirements
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      It’s what you can’t see that makes the Difference at HEXPOL
  • Blogs
    • Products
    • Wacky World of Rubber
    • New Products: Nova thinks outside the box with sealing tech
      New Products: MonTech introduces 1,500 kN lab press
      New products: 3M introduces new durable, pliable medical adhesive
      New Products: Lanxess launches energy-efficient PU elastomer
    • Wacky World of Rubber: How Trelleborg, teens sealed a spot in the world record book
      Wacky World of Rubber: Of chicken and feet, but not chicken feet
      Wacky World of Rubber: Time to go mattress shopping
      Wacky World of Rubber: Because nothing says football like 'frunk' shrimp
  • Newsletters
    • Rubber in Automotive
    • Silicone News
    • Latex News
    • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • Motion Industries rebrands as 'Motion'
      USW opposes Taiwan tire makers' dumping counterproposal
      Goodyear-branded transmission belts set to return
      Hot topics at virtual CES: AVs, air taxis and drones
    • Proto Labs to buy e-commerce company 3D Hubs for $280 million
      Ace Products & Consulting partners with Wallace Instruments
      Safic-Alcan extends distribution agreement with Momentive
      Momentive aims to grow silicone presence in Asia-Pacific region
    • Bridgestone bets on guayule as alternative natural rubber source
      Synthomer CEO MacLean to step down by early 2022
      Jack Murphy joins Akron Dispersions
      Synthomer optimistic, raises earnings forecast
  • Multimedia
    • Videos
    • Photo Galleries
  • Directory
  • Resources
    • Classifieds & Mold Mart
    • Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Sponsored By HB Chemical
      The Company Behind the Inventory
      Sponsored By French Oil Mill Machinery
      Process Improvement, Cost Reduction with Custom Press Systems
    • Sponsored By Uncountable Inc.
      Cooper Standard deploys lab informatics platform to synchronize R&D
      Sponsored By Elkem
      LSR Selectâ„¢: A solution to improve your financial impact in molding applications
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Peroxide Cureable Silicone Injection Molding
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Understanding and Selecting Performance Additives for Rubber Compounding
  • Data
  • Events
    • RPN Events
    • RPN Livestreams/Webinars
    • Industry Events
    • Past Events
    • ITEC Library
    • International Silicone Conference Library
    • 2021 Healthcare Elastomers Virtual Edition
      2021 Rubber in Automotive Virtual Edition
      2020 International Silicone Conference Virtual Edition
      2020 ITEC Virtual Edition
  • Advertise
  • DIGITAL EDITION
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
October 26, 2018 02:00 AM

Women in NAHAD continues progress in year two

Bruce Meyer
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    Amanda Shurte of UIP International Inc. at the NAHAD exhibit program along with Ted White, one of the company owners. She said White and his brother Howard have always been big advocates for her in the company.

    The Women in NAHAD initiative is in its second year, and thus far the woman responsible for getting it started is happy with the progress, though she knows there is much work to do.

    "I'm really pleased because the goal is to get that conversation going," said Karen Brandvold, vice president and chief financial officer for Omni Services Inc., a distributor of hose, accessories and other rubber products. "How do we attract and maintain and mentor and make our industry desirable for women? Women make up half of the work force. If you're ignoring that, you're not attracting the most talented work force that you can."

    Brandvold worked with NAHAD Executive Director Molly Mullins to start WIN in 2017, as Brandvold has been moving up the leadership chain of the association for hose and accessories distributors and manufacturers. That culminated with Brandvold beginning her term this past spring as the first-ever female NAHAD president.

    A session at the NAHAD convention featured author and inspirational speaker Judy Hoberman, and a good percentage of the attendees were males, which Brandvold said was encouraging.

    Author of "Walking on the Glass Ceiling," Hoberman titled her talk "Equal Not Identical." She said what's important to men in the workplace isn't necessarily the same for women.

    Hoberman cited a study where women ranked money only fifth in what was important to them at work, following work/life balance, a good relationship with their boss, meaningful work and good relationships with colleagues.

    "You don't want them to just be interested in you, you want them to commit, and that's a big difference," Hoberman said. "Women are looking for someplace they can call home. They want to find a place where they feel that this is complementary to the other parts of their life. Someplace they feel safe. Someplace where they feel wanted. There are lots of times women are brought in and they are certainly not wanted."

    The idea of equal but not identical resonated with Jackie Sherman, regional sales specialist with Eaton P.L.C. "Sometimes I feel like within our industry, with more women getting involved, they're not really sure what to do with us," she said. "Do we treat them exactly the same, or do we put them in their own little category over here?"

    Brandvold said a main part of the message is that recruiting and retaining women into the work force isn't merely about checking a box to show that your firm's work force is diversified. "No woman wants that," she said. "One of the first things women want is to be doing work they feel is relevant and helpful. Don't even have me come in if I can't do that."

    The first female NAHAD president also knows there is much work to do going forward. For example, in studying the NAHAD convention attendee list, she could only identify 16 females out of 260 distributor attendees, and only about 40 of more than 400 manufacturer attendees.

    "It doesn't really boggle my mind, because I felt that," Brandvold said. "I'm in this industry. There are women in this industry, but they're in the back office. They're in HR. They're in accounting, and some in inside sales. There are a few in outside sales, but not a lot."

    She hopes to get more women involved, along with one of her goals as NAHAD president to have a more engaged membership overall, including more men and women taking active roles. With WIN, she envisions having a group of women and men forming a committee to map out what kind of events should be staged and how to take the initiative to the next step.

    Amanda Shurte, customer service manager of UIP International Inc. said she is encouraged by the progress made by WIN in its first year. "It seems like although the women who are here are very excited to be here, there may still be some women who are intimidated or nervous, or the companies aren't meeting their needs as a woman in order to encourage them to come into this industry," she said.

    One takeaway for Shurte was to simply ask employees what drives and motivates them. "You may think money will make it for them, but sometimes for different people, different things drive them."

    She has noticed some new female faces in NAHAD, and thinks as the WIN initiative becomes more popular, more companies will realize that women can bring things to the table that maybe a man can't. "I'm real fortunate that with our company (owners Howard and Ted White) have always been a big advocate for me, so I've never felt like I'm a female versus a male," she said. "That's something that's very unique in a lot of work forces here in America."

    Shurte also is excited to be in the hose industry at a time where more women are coming into the business and NAHAD has its first female president, giving her something to look forward to as her career develops.

    "It's awesome to know that there are women who have been in this industry for many years who I can get advice from and be mentored by," Shurte said. "I am just excited to see how this program develops in years to come. I think we'll start seeing more and more women as long as we encourage them to get in here and not be intimidated by it."

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Rubber & Plastics News wants to hear from its readers. If you want to express your opinion on a story or issue, email your letter to Editor Bruce Meyer at [email protected].

    SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Rubber & Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe Today

    Subscribe to Rubber & Plastics News to get the best coverage and leading insights in the industry.

    SUBSCRIBE
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    MISSION

    To serve companies in the global rubber product industry by delivering news, industry insights, opinions and technical information.

    web
    Contact Us

    2291 Riverfront Pkwy, Suite 1000
    Cuyahoga Falls,
    OH 44221

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1726

    Resources
    • About Us
    • Digital Edition
    • Contact the Staff
    • Advertise
    • Order Reprints
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    • Terms of Service
    • Careers
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Partner Sites
    • Tire Business
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Plastics News
    • Plastics News China
    • Urethanes Technology
    • Automotive News
    • Crain Brands
    Copyright © 1996-2021. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • ITEC
      • Automotive
      • Tire
      • Non-Tire
      • Suppliers
      • Silicone
      • Latex
      • Coronavirus
      • Executive Action
      • Government/Legal
      • Opinion
      • Technical Notebooks
      • International Elastomer Show
      • Women in Tire & Rubber
      • HEXPOL Sponsored Content
    • Blogs
      • Products
      • Wacky World of Rubber
    • Newsletters
      • Rubber in Automotive
      • Silicone News
      • Latex News
      • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • Multimedia
      • Videos
      • Photo Galleries
    • Directory
    • Resources
      • Classifieds & Mold Mart
      • Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
    • Data
    • Events
      • RPN Events
      • RPN Livestreams/Webinars
      • Industry Events
      • Past Events
      • ITEC Library
      • International Silicone Conference Library
    • Advertise
    • DIGITAL EDITION