Jennifer Blanchette has a lot on her hands. As the director of manufacturing at Baxter Healthcare, she oversees the production of 40 different high-quality products, 13 manufacturing lines, and about 300 employees across two facilities. But Blanchette has never aimed to just get it done — throughout her career, she’s continuously found ways to get... Read More

We only ask for one well-written nomination to become an Influential Woman in Manufacturing honoree. But for Dafni Bika? We received nine. A longtime pharma executive, Bika’s leadership has clearly left an impact on a wide swath of industry professionals. With more than 25 years of experience in pharma, Bika is currently senior vice president... Read More

“A rising tide lifts all ships,” the idiom says. For women in the manufacturing space, this is so true because there is more to being a female leader in manufacturing than simply running a company. Women in industry are a key influence for other women who might be considering pursuing careers in industry, and 2020... Read More

After landing her first role at Pfizer, Silva worked her way through a number of positions — from health care sales to global operations and into leadership. Some colleagues advised that if she wanted to go further maybe she should go back to business school or perhaps work abroad on an international assignment. Instead, when... Read More

The entirety of 2020 feels a lot like Leap Day. It’s been rare, it’s been memorable, and it’s been one for the record books. Along that same line, never before in the history of Influential Women in Manufacturing have we had two honorees in the same year come from the same company. That was, until... Read More

You’ve no doubt heard of the company of our next Influential Women in Manufacturing Honoree. Golden Valley, Minnesota-based General Mills has been a staple on the grocery shelves throughout the coronavirus pandemic. Ensuring both food and people are safe is Christy Thompson, Principal Engineer for General Mills. If you’ve had “Big G” on your pantry... Read More

Illinois is often at odds with itself. With roughly 75% of the state consisting of farmland, it’s easy to think of the state as flat land surrounded by crops. But Illinois is also home to Chicago. Known as the Second City, the Windy City, and the City of Big Shoulders, Chicago’s population and resources make... Read More

When I first read about Julie Camardo, CEO of Zweigle’s Inc., she sounded like someone I would want to become friends with in real life. We’re both similar in age, commitment to community, as well as also being active in numerous groups that support women or women-owned businesses. Julie is a woman who has gone... Read More

As I write this, on Labor Day, I’m reminded of why we honor the people who make up our workforce. Strength. Prosperity. Social achievement. Economic achievement. The rapid expansion of industrialization and economic growth in the late 1800s paved the way for an increased labor force. Immersed in our Gilded Age, President Grover Cleveland signed a... Read More

Putman Media, publisher of Chemical Processing, Control, Control Design, Food Processing, Pharma Manufacturing, Plant Services and Smart Industry magazines, is proud to announce the 2020 class of Influential Women in Manufacturing. (See below for full list of honorees.) The 20 women who were selected this year are recognized for their leadership in manufacturing. Each honoree... Read More

Women are a huge untapped economic resource in India. And as the country continues to face a shortage of skilled workers, smart companies are recognizing the potential of the underutilized female workforce. Less than 30 percent of working-age women are currently part of India’s workforce — compared to nearly 80 percent of men — giving... Read More

In episode 2 of the Manufacturing Tomorrow's Workforce Podcast, I dig into the results of the 2019 Career Development and Gender Diversity survey a little deeper in talking with with Charli Matthews and Cieana Detloff of Empowering Women in Industry. The following is an excerpt of the podcast. Erin Hallstrom: On today’s episode, we’re going... Read More