Karen Reinhardt's career with Hastings, Minn.-based Intek Plastics began when she was 19 years old, helping during the summer while on college break.
As a production assembly worker, she drove forklifts, worked assembly lines, trained new employees and ensured quality parts were shipped to customers. Then, Reinhardt was a fulfillment specialist for inventory control and worked with departments to identify problems and analyze information to provide solutions.
Next, she was a buyer, purchasing and controlling all raw material inventory, negotiating supplier contracts and developing relationships with suppliers while also starting her APICS CPIM (planning and inventory management) certification. As a secondary fabrication supervisor, Reinhardt created schedules for the fabrication department and integrated it into the master production schedule to allow for better visibility and utilization of the workforce.
Now a senior value stream supervisor, Reinhardt supervises employees across multiple production shifts, engages with staff daily to discuss production process improvements and works with the enterprise resource planning system to ensure all reporting is accurate. She has also attained certification in planning and inventory management and completed Paulson extrusion training.
Reinhardt attended college right after high school "because it seemed like the next steps in life." She had a career plan, but after the first semester of classes, it didn't seem like the right fit for her anymore.
"It taught me that I shouldn't just do things because it's the next logical step. Take time to think it through. If you put your heart and mind into it, you will be invested in your future and do whatever it takes to achieve it," she said.
"Step outside your comfort zone," Reinhardt also advised. "You never know what kinds of connections you could make or what new innovative idea you will see that could make a huge impact on your career."