Empowering & Engaging Women: Women's Association Inspires Rihm Team Members

“It’s not a job for women.”  I can’t say how many times I’ve heard that phrase in my 18 years in the trucking industry. When I first started in trucking, I let myself believe it – well, partly. There are so many things around us that lead us to believe that women may not be good at something, or that men can do it better, which starts as early as childhood.

It’s a fact that there are more men than women in our industry. Behind the wheel, you see more male drivers than female. In the shop, the men far outnumber the women. But why? It’s not for lack of ability.

In many cases, support plays a role. If someone doesn’t receive the resources, tools and support they need to be successful in their job, the chance of failure or demise of the job may be inevitable.

We don’t want that to happen here at Rihm – so much so that we’ve made it the mission of our new resource group, the Rihm Women’s Association (RWA), to ensure that the opposite happens.

Founded earlier this year, the RWA is designed to recognize the contributions of female employees; help women expand their professional network and develop leadership skills; address workplace challenges for women; and encourage and promote more women in trucking with engagement both within the company and in the community.

Through quarterly meetings and community events, the RWA works to accomplish the following:

• Create strategies that improve female employee engagement within Rihm and the trucking industry.
• Identify and provide training and development opportunities for women to advance their careers and demonstrate leadership.
• Work to resolve discrimination and harassment and provide a more inclusive environment for women at Rihm.
• Create a work environment that ensures women have equal access to opportunities for professional growth and advancement.

Rihm held its first RWA meeting on March 8th – International Women’s Day. The speaker, our very own CEO Kari Rihm, shared how she transitioned from “professional stay-at-home mom” to president of the second longest operating Kenworth truck dealership in the world.

During meeting #2 on June 8th General Manager of PACCAR Parts & PACCAR Vice President, Laura Bloch, gave the RWA participants her top 6 tips for career development: invest in yourself, be true to yourself, take a chance, challenge assumptions, deliver results, and develop your business perspective.

“Other peoples’ advice and exactly how you should handle or approach a job is only relevant if it fits with who you are,” Laura said. Her lessons in leadership are speak your voice, support your team, and share your experiences. “A diverse team builds a better team.”

We couldn’t agree more, Laura! Special thanks to both Kari and Laura for providing support to women in trucking and helping inspire the RWA members to advance in their careers.