“My career at International Wire began in 1994, at Omega Wire in Williamstown. As a child, I was my father’s sidekick and learned how to build and fix things at an early age, so a mechanically oriented job seemed like a logical choice for me when looking for a career to support my family. My Mom worked at OWI at the time, and she liked it as well. I had to work hard to get in the door, calling and calling the HR Dept. to get an interview. I didn’t tell them my mom worked there until after they hired me as I wanted to do it on my own. Boy, am I glad I was tenacious!
I started as a buncher operator and learned how to run multiple machines and covered in the QC Lab to become well-rounded and learn as much as I could. I was fortunate to have many great trainers who cared deeply about the company and my success. That culture drew me in, and I was hooked. We all worked together, watched out for each other and our machines, and had fun too!
In 1998, new doors opened for me at Omega Wire with the birth of my son. I was placed on light duty as the ISO
Systems Clerk, assisting in document creation to achieve ISO Certification. During this time, I was able to work closely with Engineering and Production Control. An opportunity in Production Control opened, and I bid on it. Soon I was scheduling multiple plants and taking on greater challenges. I love to solve problems, explore possibilities and potential, and soon was given more responsibility, a place in which I thrived.
In 2000, Omega Production Control moved from Williamstown to Camden Wire. From there I was able to expand my learning and work experience exponentially, working with leadership to continuously improve our processes to meet our customer’s needs and improve our company. My love for data and analytics and knowledge of our systems helped me help others to make data-based decisions to propel us forward. I earned my Six Sigma Black Belt and worked to implement lean principles and drive continuous improvement in all areas of our company.
In 2016, I was offered the role of Plant Operations Manager at Camden Wire. It was a challenge that I welcomed and was fortunate to have a staff largely comprised of long-term employees deeply committed to the success of our company. I was immensely proud of our team and had a deep respect for our workforce, especially having experience as an operator. We all worked hard to ensure our Plant met the goals of both our company and customers. The hours were long but rewarding and the experience gained gave me a different perspective of our business.
In 2020, I decided to make a career change and moved to Quality Assurance for IW. This offered me new challenges and the opportunity to learn even more about our business and use my Black Belt skills. The great wealth of knowledge in our Engineering and QC Departments was amazing and I learned much from them as we worked together to drive continuous improvement through process control and root cause analysis.
At the end of 2020, I was presented with a new opportunity to be part of a new, high-performing team where I could use my skills and knowledge of our business to drive growth. Our new Business Development and Marketing Analytics Team was a perfect fit for me as a data analyst. It offered me a place to do what I love the most, work with data, research, and be creative to help create a path of future growth for the company that has given me so much over the past 27 years.
This brings my story to today, where I was recently promoted to Director of Marketing Analytics, which is a culmination of many years of hard work, continued learning, and faith in our company. I am immensely proud to work at IW and know that anyone, if willing to go the extra mile can have a rewarding career here, just like me. I am grateful for the many opportunities I have had at IW and the people who helped me at each step of the way. Thank you!.”
Jennifer Fox, Director of Marketing Analytics