Jeanette Sanchez, KI Industries Inc.

As the global distribution center supply chain manager for KI Industries Inc. in Querétaro, Mexico, Jeanette Sanchez is responsible for "making things happen."

She leads the decorative appliance and automotive parts supplier's supply chain strategy, standardization, best practices and "consistency of the supply chain process that optimizes the company's global (Mexico and United States) distribution centers." This includes coordinating with the distribution center operations with its Asian suppliers and customers.

"I am accountable to make sure that our supply chain operation works in an effective way and that the distribution center delivers the expected results in all operations," she added.

Sanchez joined KI nearly eight years ago. Although she did not have prior experience in the plastics industry, she always enjoyed learning new production processes, she said. She saw working at KI as an opportunity for learning and growth.

"In 2021, I was recognized by my KI Mexico administrative co-workers as one of the top people in the company who acts with unconditional responsibility," she said.

After three years as the operations manager for the Mexico distribution center, at the end of 2022, Sanchez was offered the chance to lead the supply chain team in the Chicago distribution center and headquarters.

"I am especially proud of this achievement as it is the first time that an associate located in Mexico has been trusted to lead a part of the Chicago operation," she said. "I believe the decisions that I make every day, how I support my team in being curious problem-solvers, being a team of doers and focusing on results enables the KI leadership team to trust in my work."

Sanchez has an undergraduate degree in industrial engineering and is in the process of obtaining her MBA.

"I used to think that to succeed I needed to do it all myself. As the time has passed and I have grown as a leader, I have realized that in order to have a strong team of doers, it is important to allow my team to learn," she said. "The best way of learning is doing, so I know I need to step back and give them the opportunity to make their own decisions, give them enough time to accomplish the required tasks and sometimes make mistakes. … I believe I have a really committed team focusing on doing things right. If a mistake is made, they know I am always there to support them and provide advice if they don't know how to fix it."

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