Her Story
About LaRhonda
I've been in manufacturing for about 12 years now. I started as a welder for almost 9 years, and then in 2022, I jumped into the management field. I graduated from Hobart Institute of Welding Technology in their Structural and Pipe Welding program in 2014, and I was luckily able to be really well at all different processes of welding, which led me to a very successful career when I was actually hands-on doing that. I got my Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Kent State University in 2022, and shortly after I obtained that, I jumped into management. My first management position wasn't involving welding - it was with ITW Permatech, a thread locker, chemical sealant, solvent type of company. I worked for them for a little while, and then I kind of figured I wanted to get back to more of what I know in a specialized field, which led me to where I am now, actually back in welding, but managing a welding department for a military defense company. I've been in this position for about two and a half years. My main area of expertise is welding and welder management. Day-to-day, I'm training and coaching my team, managing efficiencies, seeing how we can always make the department and our processes better, scheduling production, managing production to make sure we're hitting our targets on time for the month, as well as production planning, budgeting, and other recurring meetings. I'm always wanting to improve efficiencies, drive continuous improvement, and use lean practices to make sure our manufacturing environment is always headed in the right direction.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with LaRhonda
01What do you attribute your success to?
I would attribute my success to hard work, determination, and of course, I'm a believer in God as well - that's a big part of it. Family support is huge, especially my mother and my sister. Both are pretty much kind of the epitome of professionalism, the epitome of what a lady, to me, should look like, walk like, smell like, talk like. All of those things have attributed to my success.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Don't be discouraged. Although it is a pretty much male-dominated field, if it's something that you want to do, you can do it. I was there right along with them, so I would just say don't be discouraged. Welding is a very valuable career to have, a career trait to have, that's not something that everyone is able to do. And if you are able to grasp onto the processes, you can be really good at it and be really successful. And it can open a lot of different doors. You don't have to just stick with welding. You can branch off into management. You can branch off into inspection, quality, things like that, to where you're not just physically doing the welding, but kind of being a part of all the things that welding goes into. Stick with it, and if you're able to really grasp onto the skill and the craft, it can take you places. I'm proof of it. I'm a total, probably total opposite of what somebody would maybe see as a welder, but I've done it.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
You're always wanting to improve efficiencies and drive continuous improvement. I always want to be working and using lean practices to make sure your manufacturing environment is always headed in the right direction. Manufacturing throughout the day, throughout the week or the month, you have multiple changes, and just being able to grasp and being open in that environment to be able to make on-the-spot decisions and critical think - those are kind of like the challenges involved in manufacturing, but also things that make it fun and exciting as well.
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