Feature Women
Leadership Elevating Women in
JENICA EISENBACH is a global technical service director of the PPG’s Packaging Coatings division. She has more than 18 years of experience in the beverage industry, centered around metal packaging and coatings. Joining PPG last March, Eisenbach says the company boasts a strong female representation, particularly in leadership roles. She talks about some of the key takeaways from her career and what it takes to reach the top. IRIS ARSIC REPORTS.
T
his is the latest in The Metal Packager’s series profiling women in traditionally
male-dominated sectors. Through these stories, our goal is to help facilitate meaningful conversation around closing the opportunity gap, showcase the opportunities that abound in these industries, and shine light on the impact women are making across the board from entry-level jobs to leadership roles.
What sparked your interest in the sector? I entered the industry because of my love of science and food, landing a job out of college at one of the largest beer companies in the world. I was hooked when they told me I would receive free beer each month!
receive free beer each month
when they told me I would
hooked I was
What were the challenges you had to overcome and some of the most rewarding moments of your career? I faced many challenges. I’ve climbed many mountains to get to where I’m now and have learned several lessons. One of the biggest transitions of my career was when I decided to take a salaried management position after being an hourly union quality technician. It wasn’t common at the time to
cross the line. I wanted to make a difference in the company and take a path to leadership. Having the perspective of doing all the jobs allowed me to create a more efficient and self-directed workforce. I offered the quality technicians the knowledge to identify quality concerns and the stop-work authority when concerns were valid. This empowered the teams to be proactive and present and gave them pride in upholding the integrity and reputation of the product to their customers. One of the most rewarding
moments of my career has been being a part of this PPG team. The culture of this company is like family – people genuinely care about each other and work hard to support each other for the company’s common goals. I am proud to be a part of this team and am rewarded daily when I work with them.
What attracted you to PPG? Two things attracted me to PPG. First, the potential of the company is limitless. While packaging coatings is my world, it’s a fraction of the PPG world. So there are lots of opportunities to learn and grow. Second is the presence of strong
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women leaders. When I interviewed with PPG senior vice president Amy Ericson, I knew PPG was a place where I could be challenged and inspired. Amy is a strong, intelligent and purposeful leader. I knew she would be a role model, and I could not pass up the opportunity to work with her.
What do you enjoy most about your role now? Having been on the customer side for so long, I understand our company’s and customers’ needs. I most enjoy being able to help support our customers. I’m now in a position to help them overcome the challenges commonly faced, like workforce turnover, knowledge gaps, efficiency struggles and sustainability targets.
What challenges do you face now? One of the biggest challenges we face is the evolving regulatory and sustainability changes. We need to meet these challenges while continuing to deliver high- performance coatings. We have to stay diligent and closely partner with our customers to develop coatings for the future. For example, we’re successfully transitioning canmakers
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