Prior to joining Strongwell Corp., Meghan Carty was working in the hospitality industry and understanding the demands and needs of customers. In 1999, she started her plastics industry career as a customer service account manager for Strongwell and then was ushered into the world of raw material acquisition through the merger of the purchasing and pricing departments.
As the corporate director of supply chain, Carty develops a current and potential key supplier base to ensure the company has multiple supplier sources for materials and maintains a profitable pricing structure. She is the first point of contact to review purchase/contract negotiations and the sourcing of new raw materials, capital expenditure equipment and contractual services to be utilized for product development and daily operations.
In her role as director of strategic pricing, Carty evaluates commodity trends to implement competitive pricing strategies.
"Strongwell has over two dozen product lines in over 20 different markets for standard and custom profiles," said Tekai Shu, community relations manager for Strongwell. "For well over a quarter of a century, Meghan has been part of the ebb and flow of corporate operations. … Her product knowledge from sales provided her with a fundamental understanding of variable and fixed costs in relation to labor and materials. Over time, her exposure provided her with the knowledge to spearhead the pricing department at Strongwell for finished goods."
During her tenure at Strongwell, Carty has completed several programs, including Certified Supply Chain Professional and A3 Root Cause Analysis.
The best advice she has received is to ask questions, especially when it comes to data, and understand the way it was collected and presented. The advice she would give to others is to learn and research raw materials, even setting up alerts to track news regarding suppliers, "so you will not be surprised when there are issues with the supply chain," she said.
Carty is the first female college graduate from both sides of her family. She is a board member for the Bristol TN/VA Chamber of Commerce and St. Anne Catholic School Board, president of the Mountain Empire Gymnastics Boosters and treasurer of the Arts Alliance Mountain Empire.
"As Strongwell grows, she looks forward to utilizing her skills and expertise with partner companies and future acquisitions," Shu said of Carty's future aspirations. "As she starts to plan for partial retirement in the next 10-15 years, she would like to explore a career in consulting with other manufacturers."