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Packaging Horizons
Career Building: Skills to Build a Future
What are the skills that will help build womens' careers in the packaging industry during the next 10, 20, 30 or even 50 years? Not surprisingly, many of the women interviewed for this report stressed the need to believe in yourself. Have confidence, don't give up. And always keep a sense of humor.
"Gain a clear focus of the objectives of both the organization and of your position, then meet those objectives," advises Lynn Goldblatt, CIBA Vision. Then, she advises, promote yourself for having met those objectives. "Share your successes and achievements. Focus on results. People care about results--not how you got there.
"Don't be task-oriented, says Norma Pace, Paper Analytics Associates. "Do your job well, but look at the company broadly and not just your function. Pace recommends thinking about where you want to be and set out to make it happen. "Don't stay in the same place if the situation is not offering you the opportunities you want."
Be professional, outstanding at what you do and stay above politics, advises Edythe Newton, ECN Business Solutions. "Learn about people and how to work with them in the industry.
"Read, read and read some more," says Linda Barron, L Barron & Associates, who adds, "Learn everything you can about the industry, about your customers and about the world in general. You can't ever know too much, and your credibility is only enhanced."
"Be honest, patient, consistent and keep trying," suggests Madeleine Crawford, Harper Machinery. "Have a firm handshake--[it] shows you are secure, you know your product and that your customer can rely on you.
"Look for a mentor," says Pace. "It doesn't matter whether that person is a male or a female. Find someone who is helpful, interested and will listen and guide you properly. Find both male and female mentors, adds Newton. "A woman needs to be aware of differences as well. Diversity comes in all different forms: age, race, sex, cultures."
Work hard, do your homework and don't be intimidated, says Nina Tarley, Kraft Foods. Most of all, she says, don't compete with each other. Women should help each other instead.
"Look broadly at all aspects of your job," says St. Laurent. "If somebody just wants to design boxes, then you will be boxed in all through your life. But if you want to know about the finances of designing and using that box, for example, your horizons will be expanded."
"Prove yourself. Get the project done on time and on budget. It's about meeting expectations and probably in some cases exceeding those expectations to put your career on the right path," concludes Goldblatt. "It's important to constantly prove yourself and position yourself for change. Be good at managing change. If you can't manage change, you won't be successful, regardless of whether you are male or female."
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