JOYCE LONGFIELD

Principal of High Pressure Processing Applications

What do you think are some of the key factors that have contributed to your success in the industry?

Having male role models. Being a woman, I already have the woman’s intuition box checked every day. Early on in my career, I had two male role models that were very different from one another. Seeing how they interacted with clients in meetings and dinners was incredibly valuable. That again, you can’t get from a classroom. Being open-minded to this opportunity is the rst step. Thinking that because I am a woman, I will approach my career from this perspective and that I need to have a female role model is too close-minded.

What can the industry do better to support women and increase the number of women in leadership positions?

Between companies and organizations like PMMI and PPWLN [Packaging and Processing Women’s Leadership Network], more events are highlighting the successful careers women have had in the packaging industry. My career was nowhere to be studied, and if I hadn’t had the con dence in myself, my capabilities to think outside the box, ability to be independent and self-suf cient, I probably would have been too scared to take a risk on an industry I knew nothing about at the time.

Has there been a woman in your life who has inspired or mentored you? Who was she and what did you learn from her? Hands-down, my daughter. She has been my greatest daily challenge with social anxiety and ADHD. It’s been a constant battle to support her and not turn to medication. She is the reminder that when you love something you will put yourself through mental and emotional exhaustion, but the reward of hard work is worth it.

Helping her reinforced my patience but also reminded me that everyone learns differently and that if a colleague and I don’t see eye to eye on something, is there something I can do to either see it from their perspective or come up with a solution that achieves the overall goal. Not everything has a direct path and orderly procedure, but in manufacturing we rely heavily on procedures and order that we can get lost in the bureaucracy of the of ce and forget that we are all still human and still need to build healthy relationships by treating one another as a human.

What advice would you give to young women who are considering a career in packaging? Always look within for your motivation. It is no one else’s responsibility to make you happy but your own. If you love your career eld but you are not happy because of the people around you (male or female), or your pay, don’t look to change others. You need to be your own advocate for yourself and your needs.

It is your choice to either adapt, change, evolve or move on. Do not accept unhappiness because you fear what else is out there. Find the con dence within yourself to go out there and get exactly what you want in life and don’t accept anything less because you are worth it and you are beyond capable of achieving every possibility.