Women in HVACR Newsletter Edition:  Second Quarter >June 2016
 
 
Beyond Sponsorship: Creating a Mutually Beneficial Partnership
How HVACR Companies Can Help Grow Women in HVACR, and How Women in HVACR Can Help Grow HVACR Companies.
Why does a Company chose to sponsor a non-profit? As co-chair of the Sponsorship & Partnership Committee that is one of the first questions I asked myself. Why would I give my company's money to a non-profit? What are my driving factors. Well here are the top reasons that I have found:

3 Reasons Companies Sponsor Organizations (in no particular order)
  • Brand Visibility & Recognition
  • Recruitment
  • Cause of the Organization
 
Upcoming Events
Join Us at Our 13th Annual Conference
Join us at our annual Women in HVACR conference during Comfortech in Philedelphia, PA on Tuesday, September 20th at 8:00am - 4:00pm. Don't miss out on the opportunity to join us - REGISTER NOW!
 
Women in HVACR Member Spotlight
Jen Laughlin
Director of Business Development, Famous Supply
What was your motivation to get into HVACR?
To be completely honest, I needed a job after
graduating from college and the first interview I got was from a local HVAC contractor in Columbus, OH that wanted a person to help them open a showroom and also do in-home sales. My father who was working in the HVAC industry at the time encouraged me to give the industry a try. I was done with working retail and knew that I needed a job that would help me get experience to move forward on a career path; little did I know that I would still be in the HVAC industry over 10 years later.
How long have you been apart of the HVACR industry?
I have been in the HVACR industry for 11 years having worked for a contractor, wholesaler, and 2 manufacturers.
What would you say has been your greatest achievement, AND what has been your greatest obstacle?
My greatest achievement has been achieving professional growth and excelling my career while earning a masters degree and also being a full-time Mom. It has not been easy, but it has been rewarding. My greatest obstacle has been learning new technologies and different aspects of the…
Angie Snow
Co-Owner, Western Heating and Air Conditioning
What was your motivation to get into HVACR?
I am an HVAC wife! My husband has been
working in different positions in the industry for 20 years, and when we decided to purchase our own HVAC company in 2007, he asked me to be his business partner. I have a Masters Degree in Math Education, so he thought I would be the perfect person to do his "bookkeeping." I had no idea at that time that I would be as involved in the industry as I am today.
How long have you been apart of the HVACR industry?
9 years
What would you say has been your greatest achievement, AND what has been your greatest obstacle?
Achievement: My biggest achievement in our company has been our brand and culture development. As we have developed our brand we have given Western a very reputable name in our area. We have over 1,000 online reviews (mostly 5 star) and that helps us acquire new customers. Thanks to this brand development, we have experienced tremendous growth and have tripled our revenue since we bought the business in 2007. Our company is continuing to grow and we are getting ready to open a new branch…
Connect With Us
Women in HVACR on Social Media
We want to hear from you...It's 2016!
Now more than ever, there are so many ways for us to connect.
We Facebook, Twitter, Google and Instagram.
We also LinkedIn, Eblast and send quarterly newsletters.
Why? We're Women in HVACR. Let's connect and grow together.
Reach out to us! Share your successes, failures and experiences. Allow us to share and acknowledge you as a member. We want to network. Network with us! Bookmark us, tag us, follow us, email us. Let us respond, post and write about what makes a difference, or influences us all for the better.

Together this year we will engage, network, mentor and learn from each other through Women in HVACR. Together we will grow through connectivity in 2016!

Submit your ideas for future newsletter topics to: newsletter@womeninhvacr.org

President's Corner by Marjorie McAllister, Women in HVACR President

Dear Women in HVACR Members,
As the second quarter of 2016 comes to a close I am thrilled to report on our organizations accomplishments. Our reach is expanding faster than I hoped and expected. I am very proud of the time and dedication our board has put into their individual committees.

We received 11 scholarships entries for 2016 which is a significant increase from past years. Our mentorship program is well underway and we currently have 5 mentors and mentees. Our board had a vote to form a new Philanthropy Committee that will be launched in 2017 plus our online membership directory is just about finished.
We are also planning our conference and this year will be better than ever. Our theme, "Growth through Connectivity", will involve more interactions amongst attendees and speakers, and will include hands-on activities to focus on creating and using professional networks, as well as various other topics to advance professional women in their careers. For detailed information on our speakers and agenda please visit our website www.womeninhvacr.org/conference.

We are making it easier than ever before to get our members more involved in our organization. I invite you to browse our different committees www.womeninhvacr.org/committees and
reach out to one that you might be interested in. We are now offering quarterly calls where members can join our board members in discussions on current WHVACR initiatives. I encourage our members to get more involved and to make a difference.
I look forward in continuing to serve each and every one of our exceptional members.
Yours Truly,
Marjorie McAllister

5-2-1® Compressor Saver®, a division of CPS Products Inc.
Record High Number of Applicants for 2016 WHVACR Scholarship Program!
by Karen DeSousa, Education Committee, WHVACR
Scholarship applications reached double-digits for the first time ever in Women in HVACR history! We credit this year's overwhelming success to the generosity of our sponsors, who allowed us to increase 2016 scholarship offerings to two $2,000 awards, which not only represented an increase in the size of the award, but also allowed us to expand the number of awards to target women entering into the HVACR industry through either technical college/trade school or a four-year degree program.

We are thrilled by not only the quantity, but the caliber of applications we received.
The review process promises to be very challenging. Essays and transcripts will be reviewed and evaluated over the next few weeks with an anticipated announcement date of June 30th.

We want to extend our appreciation and encouragement to all of our fantastic applicants and remind each of you that students can join the WHVACR organization at no cost.

If you haven't joined already, join today to keep up-to-date with all of the news, events and networking. Best of luck to all of you in your HVACR endeavors!
Women in HVACR Mentorship Program
Thank You! by Julie Decker, Vice President, WHVACR
Thank you all who have submitted a form to our Mentorship Program. We have a nice group of ladies requesting a mentee and amazing women volunteering to be a mentor.

This is a brand new program for us and we are super excited about the positive feedback we are getting. We are far from done on the initiation of this program so your assistance is greatly appreciated. Please fill out the form on our website to volunteer if you are interested in being a mentor and even more importantly for those interested in seeking out a mentor. We have had very interesting opportunities already from succession planning, to personal growth suggestions and professional tools available for us all to use.

We will be matching up our mentee to mentor by July/August so we will be posting amazing results by 4th quarter. Thank you as we grow through connectivity!
 
Safety Equipment Women Would Actually WANT to Wear | #HVACGirlProblems
By Karen DeSousa, Co-Owner, Advance Air and Heat
I think we can all agree that HVAC work can be hazardous to your health if you're not careful and smart. But it's not enough to just have safety equipment. That equipment has to be PRACTICAL and COMFORTABLE enough to ACTUALLY USE in the field. If you can't get the work done with the safety equipment on, it's not going to help anyone. Women have it especially hard, because safety equipment is generally not made to fit us. Fortunately, there ARE options out there made specifically for women, if you know where to look. I found a couple of websites that had equipment that would not only work, but that I would actually WANT to wear.
BLUE HAWK Meet & Greet
April 27, 2016:
BLUE HAWK Conference, Dallas, TX
WHVACR held a meet and greet during the BLUE HAWK annual conference in Dallas TX this past April. In addition to a great turnout, Women in HVACR rocked during the Hawkapalooza lip-sync battle event and took home second place! Check out pictures from the event below!
Tech's Aren't Chickens
By Danielle Putnam, President, The New Flat Rate
This morning on my commute in I listened to a TED Talk podcast about the subject of the "Pecking Order" in relation to "super" chickens. Now, don't take me wrong or misinterpret my sincere respect for our industry and our technicians…they are undoubtedly far superior to chickens. However, I couldn't help but associate our desire to hire, train, and cultivate "superstar" technicians in the same way that farmers want superior chickens. Believing they'll both always have increased productivity and increased profits. Isn't that what we've been trying to do? We want to hire the best and brightest so, they'll sell more and fix repairs faster right?

So, what's so interesting about chickens? Well, we're not just talking about your average egg laying chickens here…we're talking about "super" chickens! You can't compare the two. When put in a group of average chickens, the "super" chickens caused the average group to be much more productive. The average chickens became better. But, when a group of these "super" chickens were put together, instead of productivity, they pecked each other to death. The individual motivation to achieve success suppressed the productivity of the group.
Do you really know what it is?
And do you know if it's here yet?
By Vanessa M Castro, Technical Project Manager
At this point, you may have seen over 100 articles illustrating what Internet of Things is, how it is going to change your home, your industry, and even how you communicate. However, the true majority of people cannot explain IoT if they are asked to, without using
the words Internet or Things- because let's face it, according to my grammar school teacher that is the correct way to define something, by not using the words of the item in the definition. So try it- can you properly explain IoT to a peer, your child, or your parent? Chances are you had some difficulty in one of those sectors - and you are not alone. IoT is that magical phrase that still causes a little hesitation in all our lives, what does it mean, what is it going to really do. I won't be able to answer all questions, but I am hoping after this you will be able to better understand a few key items about IoT.
WHVACR Highlights Halo
Get to Know More About Halo with This Year's President, Shawna Gazaway
HALO is a philanthropic organization open to friends, family members, employees of HARDI members, and the trade press. HALO stands for Helping All Live On. HALO has become a major charity fundraising organization within the HVACR wholesale distribution industry. From the organization's earliest beginnings more than 50 years ago, it has been dedicated to philanthropic giving, promoting HVACR and educational endeavors.…