Paige Raffaele is redefining what it means to be a young woman in the manufacturing industry. Unlike generations before her, Paige hasn't absorbed the narrative that manufacturing was a hard place for women. Instead, she's been part of the new workplace – a space that has been welcoming to young women like her. In this episode, Jenny and Ellen chat with Paige about her journey from Abbott Technical High School to Naugatuck Valley Community College and into a full-time role as a Machine Operator ...
Mar 11, 2025•18 min•Ep. 39
When you walk into your workplace, do you feel inspired and energized? Or does it feel like you've stepped back in time to 1965? This week on The Manufacturing Shake-Up, we sit down with Jennifer Gaggion, Industrial Interior Designer at Design Your Monday, to discuss how thoughtful design can revolutionize manufacturing spaces—boosting productivity, employee engagement, and even revenue. Jennifer explains why manufacturing and interior design go hand in hand, and how these 3 small, intentional c...
Mar 04, 2025•23 min•Ep. 38
Sustainability in manufacturing isn’t just good for the planet—it’s smart business. In this episode of The Manufacturing Shake-Up, Rene Parrinello, Corporate Sustainability Specialist at Legrand North and Central America, shares how small changes can create big impact. She shares the importance of documenting environmental impacts from raw material sourcing to end-of-life product disposal and how data-driven decisions can lead to cost savings, better efficiency, and a smaller carbon footprint. D...
Feb 25, 2025•25 min•Ep. 37
From early tinkering to a career turning cutting-edge ideas into real-world products, Hope Kavulich has always been driven by curiosity. Now in Product Realization at Synectic, she helps transform concepts—mostly medical devices—into manufacturable, life-changing products. In this episode of The Manufacturing Shake-Up, Hope shares how early exposure to robotics and hands-on learning led her to mechanical engineering at Quinnipiac University. At QU, she helped launch a makerspace and taught other...
Feb 18, 2025•18 min•Ep. 36
Alethea Schaeffer, Owner of Form-All Plastics and VP of Sales and Marketing at USHECO, is not only steering the ship of her family’s 60-year-old plastics manufacturing business, she’s also leading her own company through its next chapter of growth—all while balancing family life across two states. Alethea shares her journey of leadership, delegation, and cultural transformation. Discover her work in formalizing communication structures, implementing best practices, and fostering a team-oriented,...
Feb 11, 2025•20 min•Ep. 35
What if life’s challenges weren’t roadblocks but stepping stones to something greater? This week, Jenny sits down with Raji Kompalli, VP of Research and Development at Laticrete, to explore the powerful mindset shifts that have propelled her remarkable career. Raji shares how her journey from a bench scientist to a leadership role was driven by persistence, adaptability, and embracing support systems. Her story includes a pivotal moment when a visa lottery rejection forced her to return to India...
Feb 04, 2025•22 min•Ep. 34
How do you find a workplace that truly fits? For Melissa Mazo, Manufacturing Engineer Manager at Straton Industries, the answer lay in meaningful conversations, a culture of respect, and the power of a clean manufacturing facility. In this episode, Melissa shares her journey from a CT technical high school to leading in aerospace manufacturing, all while defying stereotypes and creating space for others to succeed. Melissa’s story begins with curiosity—learning how to create something tangible a...
Jan 28, 2025•20 min•Ep. 33
In this episode, Lena Geliga shares invaluable lessons about personal growth, effective communication, and learning through failure. Now Operations Manager at Hygrade Precision Technologies, Lena talks about her career journey starting in retail and now leading operations in a high-precision manufacturing environment. Lena’s story emphasizes the importance of asking questions and embracing mistakes as opportunities for growth. From setting boundaries to recognizing your value in the workplace, L...
Jan 21, 2025•21 min•Ep. 32
Ever faced a moment where you knew you had to leap into the unknown to chase your dreams? In this episode, we talk to Kristen Tangarone, founder of KTJones Management Consulting, about the daring career pivots that shaped her journey. Kristen shares how she transitioned from 20 years in traditional manufacturing to spearheading operations in the emerging cannabis industry. Then most recently, she launched her own consulting business. Along the way, she reveals the leadership lessons she’s learne...
Jan 14, 2025•22 min•Ep. 31
Jaclyn Epstein, COO of MICA Corporation, shares how her leadership is inspired by her grandfather’s values of doing good and doing right. Jaclyn explains how the words 'care' and 'careful' perfectly describe manufacturing as they drive decision-making, quality, and trust in the workplace. She discusses how she tackles challenges through self-awareness and vulnerability. She also shares her tips on how to take on tough conversations. Her story highlights how embracing vulnerability, fostering tru...
Jan 07, 2025•20 min•Ep. 29
As we enter a new year, many of us create ambitious lists of goals—but how do we move from writing them down to actually accomplishing them? In this practical episode, Jenny and Ellen have a conversation that walks you through the art of setting and achieving meaningful goals. They break it all down into an actionable 5-step process, making the often-daunting task of goal achievement feel manageable and exciting. Here’s what they cover: Choosing the goal Discovering your "Why" Measuring progress...
Dec 30, 2024•22 min•Ep. 30
How can success drive more success? By pulling it apart to discover what made that success happen! In manufacturing, we are no strangers to pulling apart problems, doing root-cause analysis or applying Lean and continuous improvement principles. But how often do we take a pause to recognize a 𝐰𝐢𝐧 and find out what steps made it happen? In this episode, Ellen and Jenny walk us through an exercise of narrowing down a big win into smaller parts and then pulling it further apart to discover what ...
Dec 23, 2024•23 min•Ep. 28
In this episode, Lisa Brown, Market Segment Director at Ensign Bickford Aerospace and Defense (EBAD), shares transformative insights on navigating career growth without falling into the social media comparison trap. Lisa discusses the importance of learning in your first year, using lateral moves to build diverse skills, and the value of mentorship and networking. She emphasizes self-reflection, realistic timelines, and focusing on personal growth rather than external validation. Whether you're ...
Dec 17, 2024•23 min•Ep. 27
What does it mean to truly find your fit in the manufacturing world? For Mia Merrel, Director of Product Management at ASSA ABLOY, it’s about combining creativity, collaboration, and a fearless drive to learn. In this inspiring episode of The Manufacturing Shake-Up, Mia shares how she carved out her role, from seeking mentorship to launching innovative projects that transformed how her company communicates. This episode also dives into Mia’s leadership philosophy, exploring how she uses collabor...
Dec 10, 2024•20 min•Ep. 26
On this episode with Jayme Coates, COO of Juniper Biomedical, Jayme shares some of her key career insights. Jayme talks to Ellen and Jenny about gaining inspiration from nature – both to clear her head AND in its simplicity. She's discovered that reducing complexity is often the key to solving really challenging problems. Jayme's background and experience also underlines why it's so important to keep an open mind, challenge your assumptions and stay curious. She talks about career choices she th...
Dec 03, 2024•21 min•Ep. 25
Kristina Pacheco's story challenges conventional ideas of who “belongs” in the manufacturing industry and proves that career paths may be a bit winding before finding the right one. When Kristina realized she didn't want to go into college debt, she started her journey to find a hands-on career. At first she landed on traditional female-dominated fields in the beauty industry before she realized those really weren't for her. Eventually she was introduced to the fields of welding and then machini...
Nov 25, 2024•20 min•Ep. 24
Amanda Wiriya's story is a testament to the power of listening, being transparent, and exploring your transferable skills. She began her career at Wepco Plastics as an Administrative Assistant, seeking stability and flexibility. But leaders at Wepco saw her potential and her ability to use skills derived from previous (non-manufacturing) roles, leading ultimately to her rise to the role of Vice President of Operations. Today, Amanda leads Wepco’s operational strategy, finances, and human resourc...
Nov 19, 2024•20 min•Ep. 23
Sit down with Beatriz Gutierrez, President & CEO of CONNSTEP, a leading force in Connecticut’s manufacturing ecosystem. Beatriz shares key moments from her career journey. She opens up about an early career situation where she doubted her readiness for a leadership role, only to realize later that she had underestimated her unique strengths. She reflects on our tendency, as women, to need to feel "overqualified" before taking a leap - a mindset she urges others to overcome. From Colombia to ...
Nov 12, 2024•23 min•Ep. 21
Catherine Pratt, Program Manager at HyAxiom, shares her inspiring journey in the world of sustainability. Charting a path through chemical engineering, she now leads projects that address one of the biggest global challenges—climate change. She takes her mission personally as both a professional and a parent. Catherine shares how her career evolved from individual contributor to leadership, and the mindset shifts that helped her get there. Along the way, we learn how Catherine’s transparent lead...
Nov 05, 2024•20 min•Ep. 20
This episode is for every student/young adult getting ready to start college, or step into the workplace. Mollissa Bennett is a huge advocate for the trades after finding her path in welding. She came out of a 10-month technical program with no debt, ready to work and learn on-the-job. But it wasn’t always easy. Mollissa landed in some really toxic work environments before finally landing at HABCO Industries. She learned the hard way that you don’t have to put up with working in a toxic or unsaf...
Oct 29, 2024•21 min•Ep. 19
From her early experiences in laser technology to her current leadership role at a global machine tool company, Salay Quaranta, Vice President of Sales at Tsugami America blends technical expertise with creativity and a passion for building strong relationships. Salay shares how her upbringing in a family of engineers and designers fueled her curiosity and love for both science and the arts. Her career began with a degree in material science and engineering, and she quickly gravitated towards th...
Oct 22, 2024•25 min•Ep. 18
You don’t need any more proof than this episode that early exposure to STEM concepts and careers can mold someone's life in a positive way. This episode with Raquel Bolling, Technical Trainer at the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology (CCAT), starts with a family that supports STEM, a school that centers STEM, and a student that thrived with that exposure. But even with all that support, it wasn't all smooth sailing. Raquel talks about what it was like being educated and working in a male...
Oct 15, 2024•24 min•Ep. 17
Amelia Campbell knew she wanted to improve her life, for herself and her family. Thanks to some great advice, hard work, and self-determination, she is on the path to great success. This week's episode is an inspirational story that starts with losing a job, but ends with a sought-after position at a great CT manufacturer. Amelia was determined to get better work. After going through the CT Women Can Weld program and getting work with the Ironworkers Union, she found herself at a machining progr...
Oct 08, 2024•26 min•Ep. 16
This week’s episode of the Manufacturing Shake-Up focuses on the misperceptions we can get stuck on in our careers. First, Monica Hilgarth, Lab Services Manager at Hampford Research, talks all about how to stop taking no for an answer. Many people, women in particular, can feel that no is a final answer when asking for things in the workplace. But Monica explains that oftentimes, ‘no’ is just a starting offer. It demands a response to dig deeper. Sometimes ‘no’ means you have to communicate bett...
Oct 01, 2024•23 min•Ep. 15
In our previous episode with Christine Marcin, Chair of Women in Manufacturing CT chapter, we started a conversation about networking organizations and the importance of joining them for your personal and career growth...but many people simply don't know 𝘩𝘰𝘸 to network! In this episode, Ellen and Jenny talk through some of their thoughts about the "rules" of networking. Or rather, how to throw those so-called rules out the window! Learn from Ellen and Jenny a few tips on how to enter a room, ...
Sep 24, 2024•27 min•Ep. 14
Cristal's manufacturing story starts with her arrival from Puerto Rico after losing everything to natural disaster. It continues with her college graduation just a couple months ago. And it moves forward with an incredible future in manufacturing! This is a story of Cristal's perseverance, but also of the life-changing power of a career in manufacturing. Ellen and Jenny talk to Cristal about her first steps into manufacturing, her return to school, and how she uses networking to learn and grow. ...
Sep 17, 2024•23 min•Ep. 13
There are many outstanding manufacturing organization you can be part of in CT. One that's nearest and dearest to our hearts is the Women in Manufacturing Connecticut Chapter. This group provides networking and educational opportunities, both locally and nationally, to help women in the industry to connect and develop their career. On this episode, Ellen Feldman Ornato speaks with chapter Chair, Christine Marcin. They not only talk about the value of the organization, but also discuss topics lik...
Sep 10, 2024•23 min•Ep. 12
If there's one thing we've learned in our first 10 episodes, it's the incredible power of mentorship on the careers of our guests. So, we are THRILLED that the Connecticut Office of Manufacturing has sponsored a new mentorship community, through Million Women Mentors Connecticut, that aims to connect mentors and mentees across STEM fields, starting with manufacturing. On this week's episode, we talk to Colleen Bielitz, the state leader for Million Women Mentors and the AVP of Strategic Initiativ...
Sep 03, 2024•22 min•Ep. 11
How do you combine heart with business and still be profitable? You lead with love and respect, and it all comes back to you. Robin Ritz, Creative Visionary at InCord reminds us that people generally want to do more for people that do more for them. Call it the law of reciprocity – or just kindness begets kindness....but Robin has learned that you can be a good person and a good businessperson all at the same time. This episode is truly inspiring. We see first-hand what it means to love what you...
Aug 27, 2024•25 min•Ep. 10
Do you need a boost of positive energy – look no further than this episode! Jess Westerfield, Director of People + Culture at Lesser Evil, perfectly reflects the company's products - a boost of energy that's healthy and fun! Jess, Ellen, and Jenny talk about Lesser Evils' outstanding culture – it's no wonder they've been able to build and retain a 70% female workforce! That's more than twice as much as the national average in manufacturing (now standing at around 30%). So, you know there's a lot...
Aug 20, 2024•21 min•Ep. 9
