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​Careers Without Boundaries: Meyer Tool Invited to Participate in Non-Traditional Career Panel

March 29, 2012
What is a non-traditional career? It’s a career in which 25 percent or less of a certain gender is represented; for instance, men in nursing and women in automotive technology. Being a woman involved in the manufacturing world, Meyer Tool & Mfg., Inc. president, Eileen Cunningham, certainly fits the bill. As such, Eileen was invited to participate in the Moraine Valley Community College (MVCC) Non-Traditional Career Panel which took place on February 24, 2012.
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The Non-Traditional Career Panel included four panelists in non-traditional careers for their gender, responding to questions regarding their career choice and the challenges presented by it. In addition to Eileen, the four panelists included a male nurse, a female civil engineer and a male massage therapist. The event was designed as an attempt to broaden the career spectrum for those in the midst of making career choices. The audience was a mix of college and junior high students and the panelists took turns sharing their experiences with the group.

For Eileen, it was a great opportunity to pursue the Meyer Tool mission of changing the perspective of manufacturing as a career choice. Manufacturing is not often the first industry that comes to mind when today’s youth are contemplating what to do with the rest of their lives. Parents overwhelmingly want their children to go to college, often to pursue a business related or service occupation. Unfortunately, manufacturing has had a lot of bad press over the years. Many training facilities have been closed due to budget shortfalls, especially in the high schools where they used to be readily available to introduce students to manufacturing as a potential career path.

While the current perception of manufacturing as a career may not be flattering, the reality is resoundingly positive. High tech manufacturing facilities are what remain in the United States today. Re-shoring efforts (efforts to bring manufacturing back to the States) are being initiated due to quality and delivery issues overseas. Manufacturing has led America out of every depression or recession since the 1930’s. And, the fact remains that there are just not enough skilled workers available to meet demand; resulting in career stability and rising wages, an unusual find in this economic time. Manufacturing definitely offers a life-long career path with above average wages in a cutting edge world to those who are mechanically inclined and enjoy seeing the physical fruit of their labor. Colleges are enhancing programs at a rapid pace to meet the needs of this industry. And through tuition reimbursement programs such as that offered by Meyer Tool, students can get their degree while gaining on-the-job experience. In a few short years, they are ready to face the world – with no college debt incurred! These students have a leg up on the competition, too, because they have practical experience, not just classroom theory with little or no experience in applying lessons to real world situations.
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For more information on non-traditional careers, contact Laura Kockler, MVCC Job Resource Specialist at (708) 974-5431 or visit their website.
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Following are some of the questions and answers offered by Eileen:
  1. How did you decide on pursuing your career choice?It just happened. When I was a little girl, my dad started this machine shop in our garage at home. He actively groomed his only son, my brother, to partner in the business. Since manufacturing was not a “woman’s” field, he didn’t have the girls involved at all. I ended up pursuing a career in accounting which is a more traditional role for a female, never with the expectation that I’d be joining our family business. However, he eventually did ask me to join him, to bring accounting expertise in house. After initially starting with more administrative duties, I eventually gained credibility in what I was doing and became more and more a part of the strategic team, proving myself in a leadership role. My father was devoted to building the business and it was his dream that Meyer Tool would be able to continue on in his absence whenever that day came. Ultimately, he ended up asking me if I’d accept responsibility for leading the 2nd love of his life, the Meyer Tool family, into the next generation. I accepted, hence my role as president of a manufacturing firm. While I’m sad that dad is no longer able to be part of the business, I’m also incredibly proud to say that we’ve successfully made the transition to second generation leadership, another great challenge that faces many businesses.
  2. What was the biggest challenge you’ve faced working in a non-traditional career? How did you overcome that challenge?Gaining credibility. First, I was a female in a man’s world, second, and a much larger detriment to my credibility, I was the boss’s daughter. So working hard, performing at my best every day and having patience and respect for the status quo – I tried to be careful not to rock the boat unnecessarily – proved to be important traits in gaining credibility in the workplace. I do think that a college degree and respected certifications (I am a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Professional in Human Resource (PHR) certified) add to my personal credibility. On the job, I tried to be approachable and ask for input and feedback. I would be sure to ask questions out of the need to build my manufacturing expertise, not because I was criticizing the current process. I learned a lot from people helping me. Face it, when you are new to the job, the more experienced people probably know a lot more than you about it, they are emotionally invested in the way things are; and hopefully, if the right people are in the right place in an organization, they take great personal pride in the company and it’s accomplishments since it is a reflection of their contribution!
  3. What do you enjoy most about your career?I enjoy contributing to something greater than myself on a number of levels. I am proud to be carrying on my father’s legacy. It means the world to me. I like accepting leadership responsibility for the 35 families employed by Meyer Tool and their financial stability. It’s not easy at all, but my decisions and actions affect how our families are able to enjoy life outside the company and there is a great sense of purpose to that. I am also so proud of the service our company provides– that we contribute to the promotion of basic science and research and cutting edge technology that ultimately contributes to the health and wealth of our nation as a whole. We are contributing to the future – in a good way.
    And I like being different. I bring the benefit of a unique perspective that can promote more well-rounded decisions and keeps people more open-minded. Being different can allow everyone to be more open and honest and look at things how they really are, avoiding stereotypes.
  4. What steps has your organization/industry made in terms of recruitment, inclusion and retention on non-traditional career employees?We really take no specific action to favor any party. So while we take no biased action to preclude any non-traditional employees, we also take no action to benefit them. Maybe we don’t think about it because we have a naturally diverse work force, or maybe we don’t think about it because I have a non-traditional role, but at Meyer Tool, we really attempt to allow everyone the same opportunities. Every person complies with same pre-hire procedures, testing, etc., and whether you move on in the interview process is based on your performance, test score and skill set and nothing else.
  5. What advice can you provide to someone considering a non-traditional career?Don’t be afraid to push yourself out of your comfort zone. Obviously, if you are considering a non-traditional career, you are a person willing to do that to some extent. Often the greatest accomplishments are by those willing to question the status quo or try something new. This may mean that a learning experience awaits outside of the traditional path. So take outcomes as just that, learning opportunities. Work hard, have the courage to go for it, remain passionate and just do your best. And in the end, always be willing to take personal responsibility for results. Don’t jump to a victim mentality if things don’t go as planned. Do not think that they’re doing this to me because I’m different. Accept personal responsibility. Ultimately, you’re in charge of how your journey plays out.
  6. Are there any professional organizations you are a part of and can recommend to others? What have you gained from being a member of those organizations?I take advantage of career appropriate networking groups although my participation is not because I’m in a non-traditional role. For example, I am a member of The Alternative Board (TAB), a small business president’s group that meets monthly to talk about issues facing small business leaders today. This group would be a benefit to any small business leader regardless of background. I join career appropriate groups on networking sites like LinkedIn. There I can learn about new or breaking developments in my field. Peers ask questions and communicate on job related issues that provide interesting feedback and perspectives even if you didn’t think of the question.
    I participate in company/product related organizations such as The Cryogenic Society of America and the Superconducting Particle Accelerator Forum of America (SPAFOA). These keep you connected with people and peers in your industry.
    A woman in a science related field is truly a minority. Often at large events such as trade shows, the women tend to gravitate towards each other. Meeting other people in your situation adds to your comfort level, especially when you first join or embark on your career. You automatically have a common ground. Because of my non-traditional role, I’ve been invited to participate in Women in Engineering. This group sponsors meetings or lunches for women only at conferences. The non-traditional professionals come together and share strategies for dealing with situations that come our way. For example, one lunch topic asked women to share tips for balancing motherhood with their career. Participating in a support group for people in your non-traditional career is an obvious choice.
  7. What would you recommend others to do to prepare themselves to succeed and be at the top of their industry/field?Keep learning: Whether traditional classroom based education, on-the-job education, inspiring books or articles, or partnering with a mentor, learn from leaders you admire in all areas of your life and apply their lessons to your situation. Understand that learning is a life-long journey and there’s opportunity to learn everywhere. One place I try to learn is from my son’s club soccer leaders. Why do disgruntled players leave the club? How do they motivate individual players and the team as a whole? After a game with a big turn-around in score, the first thing I ask my child is, “what did coach say at halftime today?”

    ​Persevere: Look at Lin-sanity. He is an Asian American basketball player who doesn’t look the part and some speculate that’s why he was overlooked in the NBA to begin with. While you are forging a new path in your less traditional role, you are opening borders and minds for those who follow. You may have to try harder than the person who looks the part, but keep going. The world will take notice and the journey will provide you with experiences that are just not available to those on a more traditional path. By embracing challenges, you will likely develop a greater sense of personal strength and fortitude because you’ve been able to persevere beyond obstacles that the typical person doesn’t get presented with as early on in their career, and that’s a huge benefit.

    Most of all: never, ever, ever give up!
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From left to right: Eileen Cunningham, Mohamad Dabboush, Laura Kockler, Mary Ellen Mack, & Bill Underwood
Q&A Panel: Eileen Cunningham, President of Meyer Tool; Mohamad Dabboush, Certified Nursing Assistant; Mary Ellen Mack, Local Agency Construction Supervisor; Bill Underwood, Massage Therapist; Lauren Lockler (Podium)