Jessica Johnson, Raven Southeast Operations Manager/Project Specialist, just celebrated her 20th anniversary with SIGMA! A true team player, Jess refers to her coworkers as “family” and is emphatic in highlighting their commitment, their work ethic, their skill—not hers. Ever humble, she eschews the characterization that she is a “SIGMA Star”, instead insisting, “My team members are the stars. I just get to manage them, and that is my privilege.”
Jess has risen to a position of leadership in the company through an unwavering commitment to hard work. She began working with SIGMA on May 1, 2000 as a receptionist. Within months, she was moved to Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable, and from there, to Shipping and Sales, where she learned the logistical aspects of the business—creating bills of lading, shipping product, negotiating trucking and carrier rates. Then she was moved to the OEM division, where she became the Assistant Plant Manager, and then the Plant Manager. She oversaw specialized manufacturing of high precision parts, and was so successful that the then-CEO tapped her to run both the OEM and main warehouses in Alabama.
SIGMA then branched out into HDPE Roto-molding, and Jess was asked to run the division. This required learning an entirely new manufacturing process with new equipment, but true to form, Jess led her team to success. She now oversees manufacturing in both Alabama and Idaho, and in addition to the day-to-day processes, she conducts high-level inventory forecasting to ensure sufficient product for customer needs at all times. The facilities are running 24 hours a day, 5 or 6 days a week.
When she’s not overseeing a major manufacturing operation, Jess is usually on a ball field. A devoted mom, she describes her family as “sports nuts”. She was an athlete in her youth, and both of her kids followed in her footsteps. She and her husband of 22 years have 2 children. Their 20-year old daughter, a nursing student at Central Alabama Community College, played softball there, and their 17-year old son, a senior in high school, plays both football and baseball. Jess sees sports as a great life lesson: “I tell my kids to be team players. There’s no such thing as failure if you work hard, persevere through the worst, and have a good attitude. I also tell them to work now so you can play later—because if you don’t work hard now there’s no playing later!”
SIGMA congratulates Jess on her 20 years with the company, thanks her for her excellent work, and wishes her and her team continued success.