The tenure definitely stood out to me. We have people who have been here ten, fifteen, twenty years or more, and they're not all in one department. It's spread all throughout the organization. Coming from other manufacturing environments, that definitely caught my attention.
The other thing that really stood out to me was how genuinely kind and helpful everyone is. It's pretty common when you first start somewhere for people to go out of their way to welcome you and offer to help, but I've been here about five months now and that hasn't changed. People are still constantly willing to answer questions, explain how something works, offer to help, or point me in the right direction. It doesn't feel like people are doing it because they're supposed to. It honestly feels like it's just built into who they are as people, and I think that's pretty amazing. You don't see that everywhere anymore.
Between that and the amount of long-term tenure here, I think it says a lot about the relationships people have built and the kind of environment Chem-Pak has created over the years.
For me, it shows up in the little things. People know each other here. When someone is having a hard time, celebrating something exciting, or just needs some help, people notice. You see coworkers and managers checking in on each other because they genuinely care. It doesn't feel forced or like something the company is trying to manufacture. You can put a lot of programs and policies in place, but that kind of caring really comes down to the great people we have here.
I think it's a combination of relationships built, pride in the work, and knowing that what you do matters. Something I say a lot is that we often spend more waking hours with our coworkers than we do with our own families, so the people you work with and the environment you're in really matter. When you've worked beside someone for ten, fifteen, or twenty years, you've built a lot together. Those relationships become a big part of why people enjoy coming to work and why they stay.
Of course we look at experience and whether someone can do the job, but I'm also really interested in how someone works with other people. You can have an incredibly talented person, but if they can't communicate, take feedback, or work as part of a team, that's going to be difficult in an environment like ours. I also look for people who want to learn. You don't have to walk in knowing everything. Some of our strongest employees have grown into completely different roles during their time here. I want someone who is dependable, curious, willing to jump in, and interested in getting better. We can build a lot from there.
Definitely. Our CEO and President grew up with this company, his dad started Chem-Pak, and his son, our VP and General Manager, is the head of our senior leadership team. I think that history matters because this isn't just a business to them. It's something their family has built and cared about for decades.
What I really appreciate is how present they are. You can find our CEO and President troubleshooting with our chemists, and our VP and General Manager can be seen on the production floor talking with our operators. Our senior leadership team spends a lot of time talking through real situations involving our employees and thinking about how decisions will actually affect people.
Sometimes as people move into leadership roles, they can lose touch with where they started. I don't see that here. Our leadership team stays very connected to the day-to-day work and to the people doing it. When we make decisions, there is a real effort to think about everyone here, not just the business side of it.
I've spent a lot of time listening and learning. When you're coming into a company with 60 years of history and employees who have been here much longer than you have, I think it's important to understand why things are done the way they're done before you start changing them.
At the same time, Chem-Pak is growing, and there are areas where our HR practices need to grow with it. I've been working on updating policies, making our processes more consistent, moving more of our onboarding and employee information into better systems, and giving managers clearer tools and resources to support their teams.
I'm also really focused on employee growth. We're creating more visibility around internal opportunities, looking at how we develop and promote people from within, improving the way we recruit, and making sure employees understand what opportunities are available to them here.
There's a lot I still want to do, which is probably what I like most about the role. I was brought in to help build, and I've been given the opportunity to do that.
There is so much history here and so many people who have helped make the company what it is today, and I think there's a lot of value in that. At the same time, there are a lot of opportunities for us to keep improving. I'm excited about creating more opportunities for people to grow, making career paths clearer, giving managers better tools and resources, and continuing to improve some of our systems and processes as the company grows.
What I really like is that I don't think we have to lose the personal feel of Chem-Pak in order to grow. We can keep the relationships, the kindness, and the family feel while still continuing to improve and move forward. I'm excited to be part of helping shape what that next chapter looks like.
Whether you're starting your career or bringing years of experience with you, there's a lot of opportunity to make an impact at Chem-Pak. If you're looking for a place where you can learn, contribute, and grow with the company, take a look at our current opportunities.
Lauren Ingram is Human Resources Manager at Chem-Pak, Inc., where she leads the company's HR function and supports its people-focused workplace culture.
