Mary Day
Sr Quality Engineer
Sanmina
Everyone takes a unique path to their current place in life. Mary's story reminds us that it doesn't matter where you started, with the right drive and determination, you will be able to carve out the career you want.
Please briefly summarize your career
I left school without graduating, got married and started working as an operator in manufacturing Quality Control. While in that role, I decided to attend night classes so that I could advance my career. Over the next 6 years, I gained qualifications in Quality Control, Industrial Engineering and Business Studies. During the same time-frame, I advanced to a Quality Engineering role and from that to Quality Manger, then Key Account Manager and finally NPI Manager in Electronics Manufacturing before moving into medical device manufacturing where I held several Senior Quality Engineering roles before being promoted to Quality Engineering Supervisor for Medical.
How did you get into manufacturing?
Mainly due to necessity – I wasn’t qualified for anything else at the time and needed a job.
How did you get into your current role?
Hard work, on-going extracurricular study and a couple of good mentors.
What are/were some of your struggles or challenges, working in manufacturing?
At the start as I began to move up in my career, I struggled to be taken seriously as due to my educational background, I was often treated differently by some managers and verbally told that I was “not a real engineer”or that they couldn’t take me seriously because I was a woman. I often felt that I had to work twice as hard as the other (male) engineers just to be thought of as being half as good. I think that in this case, persistence finally paid off and also, as time went on, attitudes did slowly change. Now, I find that my experience is valued and there is no longer any difference in how I am treated, which is how it should be.
Who were some of the people that influenced you professionally?
The managers in two of my earlier roles – one inspired me to reach for the Engineering qualification and the other taught me how to manage people into a cohesive team – lead by example, using guidance, encouragement and loyalty.
How has the workplace changed for women since you first started?
It has changed a lot – when I started out, there were different rates of pay for men and women who did the same work! Apart from the pay, it is also attitudes that have changed – I was the only female in my Industrial Engineering class as Engineering was then still considered to be a career choice more suited to men than women and I often got asked “Are you in the wrong classroom?”. Now, people see Engineering as being a choice for anyone who is prepared to put in the study required to qualify and that’s how it should be. In the workplace, I no longer see a difference in how women are treated Vs men, which I really like!
What kind of impression would you like to leave on other women in manufacturing?
We need to help and support each other in our careers wherever we can.
What career advice do you have for other women?
Ask lots of questions and listen to the answers given. Never settle for “it’ll do!”
What are some ways you have given back to the community of women, or some ways you have made a positive influence and impact on women in manufacturing?
A couple of ladies I worked with took themselves to night classes and successfully qualified in Engineering & Technical roles after hearing my story – they told me I had inspired them because I was proof that it could be done.
What are your career goals from here, and how do you plan to reach them?
My next goal is to become Quality Manager in medical device manufacturing. My plan is to prove that I can do the work so that if the chance presents itself, I have positioned myself as the natural choice for the role.