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JM’sÌýWomen’s Inclusive Network group, WIN@JM, connects female employees and providesÌýa forum for engagement around topics that uniquely impact women within JohnsÌýManville.

RecentlyÌýthe group interviewed Erica Kemp, Production Superintendent at the JMÌýEngineered Products site in Etowah, TN. Learn about Erica’s background, career,Ìýand advice for the next generation of powerful women at JM. 

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What isÌýyour background?

I have aÌýdegree in Chemical engineering from the University of Delaware. I startedÌýstraight out of school in process engineering and have worked in buildingÌýproducts manufacturing my whole career. After process engineering, I went intoÌýproduction supervision. I had a role as a process improvement manager and thenÌýa quality and engineering management role. For the last 12 years, I’ve workedÌýin operations management.ÌýÌý

Along theÌýway, I got an MBA from Portland State University in Portland, Oregon. In myÌýcareer I’ve had the opportunity to live and work in Pennsylvania, Oregon (twoÌýtimes), Georgia and now in Tennessee. My family and I love living in EastÌýTennessee; the weather here is great and we enjoy being next to the AppalachianÌýMountains. We like being in the country and the people here are very authentic.Ìý

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WhereÌýdid you grow up?

I grew upÌýin Pennsylvania, just north of Philadelphia, living in the same town my wholeÌýchildhood I was an exchange student in Liechtenstein, a country betweenÌýSwitzerland and Austria, for a year before college. Visiting Liechtenstein wasÌýsomething I became interested in during my senior year for a differentÌýexperience, and this opportunity to travel kickstarted traveling for my career.Ìý

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How didÌýyou end up at JM?

The lastÌýplant I worked at shut down, so I began looking for a new opportunity and JMÌýwas hiring at the time. I had a chance to meet the plant manager at that time,Ìýand I loved meeting a female plant manager, which was very inspiring. I enjoyedÌýworking for a woman in operations; it felt right. I felt like this was theÌýplace that was calling to me next in my career.Ìý

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Tell usÌýabout any turning points in your career.

Every jobÌýalong the way has been a turning point; I had to learn so many different thingsÌýabout the job and the organization and also about myself. From being anÌýengineer to a leader, I figured out that while I loved process engineering, IÌýalso enjoy the opportunity to help develop other teams and people.ÌýÌý

The firstÌýexperience that I had on a plant leadership team was becoming a quality andÌýengineering manager in Georgia. I was the first woman on the plant leadershipÌýteam, and it was a different experience to go from a manufacturing organizationÌýwhere there were many strong women in leadership roles, to one that had veryÌýfew. This experience gave me the opportunity to grow in later roles and helpÌýdevelop other women engineers.ÌýÌý

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What isÌýyour perspective on work life balance?

You have toÌýgo above and beyond and put in time and effort, but you also need to make sureÌýyou enjoy the times when production is running well and celebrate yourÌýsuccesses. I am a mom of two boys and my husband has supported me in my career;Ìýhe’s the primary caregiver for our children. I always make sure I take qualityÌýtime for family.Ìý

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What kindsÌýof challenges have you faced and how have you worked through them?

EveryoneÌýhas challenges in their career, but it’s what you make of them. To me,Ìýeverywhere has a different culture that you need to understand and learn whenÌýyou go to different organizations. Take the time to understand how people workÌýtogether and develop relationships to be successful. I see challenges asÌýopportunities; it’s all about perspective.ÌýÌý

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Do youÌýhave any guidelines, principles, values, or specific life lessons that you haveÌýleaned on during your career? If so, tell us about them.

You have toÌýdo the right thing when no one else is watching. This is fundamental. WhetherÌýit’s safety, quality, or something else, I make sure that I am working onÌýlearning and developing every day. I focus on developing either the technicalÌýside of things or interactions on how people work and how they can be moreÌýsuccessful. If you get so bogged down in day-to-day, things get very stale andÌýfrustrating.Ìý

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Tell usÌýabout your family.

I couldÌýtalk about my kids all day! My son just got his learner’s permit and is excitedÌýabout learning to drive. My youngest is into tumbling, and he’s learning how toÌýdo backflips right now. My husband is very into farm life; we bought a smallÌýfarm and have 24 chickens and a vegetable garden. We love it and have beenÌýreally lucky that with COVID we didn’t have to worry about being inside all ofÌýthe time because we had the space to spread out.Ìý

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FavoriteÌýBooks?

I enjoyÌýleadership books. Simon Sinek and Patrick Lencioni are some of my favoriteÌýauthors. A fiction novel I just read was Demon Copperhead. It was interestingÌýbecause it is about the Appalachians and the rural struggle, set in VirginiaÌýbut not far from the Tennessee border.Ìý

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What doÌýyou do for fun or in your spare time?

My familyÌýand I do Taekwondo and are all first-degree black belts! By June 2024 we wantÌýto get second-degree black belts. It’s really cool to do Taekwondo as a family.ÌýWe started in Oregon and have continued over the past few years. My husbandÌýwanted to do it as a way for exercise and health, and it turned out to be somethingÌýwe could do as a family. It challenges me to do things differently and stayÌýhealthy, and I particularly love the process of working toward levels and goalsÌýand obtaining achievements. We’ve always stayed at the same level as a family,Ìýwhich helps us to continue to develop good teamwork and accountability skills.Ìý

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FavoriteÌýFood?

I reallyÌýenjoy anything that we grow and can eat. Eggs, kale, tomatoes, blueberries,Ìýstrawberries – I get excited about that. It’s a double accomplishment: a niceÌýmeal and the satisfaction of knowing we grew the food!Ìý

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What isÌýthe best advice you would give to your younger self or next generation ofÌýwomen?

I think theÌýbest thing you can do is to not limit yourself in any way. When you work hardÌýand work at something and you try different things, the sky is the limit. IÌýdon’t feel like there is a glass ceiling; it’s up to you and the choices youÌýmake. There are opportunities out there, so don’t limit yourself.