30 ENGINEBUILDERmag.com | AUGUST 2020
L
ast May, Calico Coatings, a developer of technologically advanced
coatings for the industry, introduced Jennifer Jenkins as its new
general manager. Being an employee of Calico Coatings for more
than 14 years, Jennifer has obtained the needed knowledge to truly
understand the ins and outs of the manufacturing processes at
Calico..
For Jennifer, Calico has always been about the people. e
relationships that she has built at work have become so
close they are her second family. Jennifer began working
at Calico part time as a bearing technician in 2006. ere,
with the help of Annette Lunsford, her rst supervisor, she
learned how to work in a high-performance environment
as a team member, quality inspector and order processor.
When Jennifer rst started working at Calico, beinga woman in manufacturing was rare. Only four females
worked at Calico at that time, none of which were in
leadership roles. However, times have changed and there
are currently 11 women employed at Calico, ve of whom
are in leadership positions, including Jennifer.
In 2011, she started working in shipping and receiving
where she learned a broader range of the manufactured parts
that Calico was coating, the processes required, the coatings
themselves, and the beginnings of the customer service side
of the business. By 2012, Jennifer was a customer service
and sales support representative where she quickly learned
the tendencies of Calico’s customers’ business needs.
Jennifer had the privilege of working from the back end to
the front end of the company, gaining valuable insight along
the way that would aid in her current role as general manager.
However, becoming general manager wasn’t Jennifer’s plan.
She didn’t initially see the potential that others working
around her saw, but midway through her career, she started
to recognize her success as she had gradually chosen to take
on more responsibility and leadership. General manager then
became a personal objective for her.
“ e biggest thing I have learned working at Calico,
with the help of my colleagues, is my own potential,”
Jenkins says. “I am blessed and I am grateful for the
opportunity Gary gave me in 2006 to join the Calico
team, and for the leadership role Tracy (Calico’s owner) has
trusted me with today.”
e greatest challenge Jennifer has faced in the
manufacturing environment has been her gender. She
learned early on that she needed to be over-prepared for
every circumstance. is involved learning from those
around her and from previous circumstances as well as
doing further research when needed.
“You have to learn early on that it’s a struggle to gain
trust and the respect of your customers and colleagues,”
Jenkins says. “You gain that respect and trust when you
continually ful ll your promises and make it your goal to
successfully solve their problems. Spend the time learning
from others around you, have mentors, read materials
related to your industry, know your environment, know
the applications and the process. If you have knowledge,
you will succeed. Before you try and change the game, you
have to know the game.”
Jennifer plans to continue growing within Calico as
a leader and to promote growth opportunities for other
personnel. She also plans to work closely with the sales
team and customers as Calico continues to transition from
a small to a large business, now in its 20th year. EBJENNIFER JENKINS
GENERAL MANAGER, CALICO COATINGS
23-32 eb.aug20 Women in the Industry.indd 30 8/7/20 8:29 AM
Naresh Jariwala