In the short time that she has managed inside sales and customer service, Heather Hartman has transformed the groups. She is breaking the leadership mold.
Hartman changed the bonus structure for inside sales — with significant results. The change, she said, allowed a better focus for them.
"One of the hardest things I've ever had to do was reassess the people on the team and understand that not everyone was the right fit for the team. We now have a team marching to the same beat. It was difficult but totally necessary," she said.
The customer service team has reduced the amount of errors resulting in returns.
"I feel like a proud mom when I go to trade shows and hear that our team is the best in the industry," she said. "Both teams are now more cohesive than they have ever been, willing to help each other at every turn."
To continue breaking the mold with the teams, Hartman is working on better training and more knowledge at their fingertips: "Transparency and honesty are values I live by, and it seems to have made a difference."
Hartman joined the plastics industry working in customer service at DME.
"My best friend was working there at the time and let me know that there was an opening, so I applied and got it," she said. Hartman moved to inside sales, became the inside sales supervisor and then strategic project coordinator, moved to 3D printing at Fisher Unitech, then came to PCS as an inside sales representative before being promoted to inside sales manager and adding customer service.
"I never imagined being in the plastics industry 20-something years later, but here I am — and I love it."
The "resilience" of the plastics industry surprises Hartman: "It ebbs and flows, and those that have the right plan in place will prevail."
Her current challenge at work involves balancing herself and her workload. Hartman said she enjoys her current role, and even though there are some rough moments, she finds it to be a "pretty fulfilling position."
She looks up to her manager, Derrick Jones, vice president of sales and marketing at PCS: "I aspire to be him one day. His expectations are clear; he is open and honest and funny. He always has good advice for me, specifically believing in myself."