Her Story
About Teri
Teri Klaverweiden serves as manager overseeing maintenance and corporate recruiting at Piedmont Airlines in Salisbury, Maryland. She has been with the company for 16 years, beginning her career there in human resources as an onboarding specialist before running the random drug and alcohol testing program for seven years. After transitioning to recruiting, where she has spent about nine years, Teri advanced to her current leadership role managing maintenance hiring. She holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from 1987 and has completed professional development including IAS training, Train the Trainer, and Train the Trainer on implicit bias. Teri is a member of AWAM, the women's association for aviation maintenance, and Women in Aviation International. She attributes her success to determination and seizing opportunities, values integrity, honesty, trust, and transparency above all, and advises others that leadership is possible regardless of position in the hierarchy.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Teri
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to determination and seizing opportunities. You don't always get the opportunity right away. You have to be determined to continue to seek out the opportunity, which is how I managed to get to the position that I'm in now.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Remember that no matter what your position, no matter where you stand in the hierarchy, you can still be a leader, you can still lead people, and be influential. Don't look at the hierarchy and determine that you don't have that ability.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Find something that you love to do, and do it. Don't let any external barriers or mindsets throw you off your predetermined path. Do what makes you happy, because we're gonna be doing a lot of things for our entire lives, or at least our working lives. You need to love what you're doing and be true to yourself.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
We're often having to do more with less, that's just a sign of the economic times, but recognizing that that is cyclical. Everything is a season, right? And the season will pass. Stereotypes are still an obstacle, but opportunities are reopening up. People are finally starting to realize this good old boy network needs to go and everyone that we work with can contribute in a positive and growing way.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Integrity first. Absolute integrity. Honesty, trust, and transparency are all really critically important.
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