Shattering Glass Ceilings: Women Executives in Manufacturing and Technology

 
In a 2019 Deloitte and the Manufacturing Institute survey, more than 70% of women participants indicated underrepresentation of women in their company’s leadership teams. There is a need for women executives in manufacturing and technology. Now is a prime opportunity for women executives to rise in advanced manufacturing because U.S. manufacturers are facing a projected shortfall of 2.5 million workers by 2025.

Women participation in manufacturing has grown from 3% to 30% over the past ten years. That’s good news, but it could be even greater.

On this episode of DisruptED, host Ron J. Stefanski introduced a new guest host to the program. Kelly Ireland, the IoT Community’s 2022 Woman of the Year. Ireland, the Founder & CEO of CBT. Ireland and Stefanski previously discussed the evolving role of women in the technology space in a previous episode. As a leader in the tech community and a representative of the women executives in manufacturing and technology, Ireland was excited to bring on another leader representing all the glass ceiling breakers out there with a high “GSD index.” Ahlam Alqudah Qaimari, the General Manager at Griffin Glass & Metal Werks. Qaimari’s journey is a global one, and she got to share those experiences and insights with Stefanski and Ireland. “I give high credit to my mom, a teacher for thirty-four years,” Qaimari said. “My mom, she’s a math and science teacher. For all my siblings and me, math is not a choice. It’s something the first thing we learn in our life. That’s why, when I was in school, that was the easiest subject. I never had to put a lot of effort in because she (my mom) fed me how important math and language were for our lives to be strong.”

Stefanski, Ireland, and Qaimari discuss women executives in manufacturing…

● The challenges faced by a woman in tech who originated from outside the United States

● Managing a career, extended education, and a family as a woman leader in tech

● What Griffin Glass & Metal Werks is doing with digital transformation

“We are a fabricator, and we work in the manufacturing industry and fabricator for glass and metal,” Qaimari said. “We use high-end technology inside the company between the machines and the programs. We create our own programs. With one click, we have one program that switches from sheet paper to a CAD drawing, where we send it to a machine to read it and convert it to give the machine orders to start running and cutting the piece of glass or to cut the metal.”

About Ahlam

Ahlam Alqudah Qaimari is an accomplished Industrial Engineering leader with a strong track record of improving organizations without adding costs in various global firms. Qaimari possesses experience leading engineering teams in a manufacturing setting. Qaimari holds a master’s degree in industrial engineering from Northern Illinois University.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

Class 8 trucks
Driving the Future at ACT Expo: Windrose Showcases Its Purpose-Built Electric Class 8 Trucks
July 1, 2025

At the ACT Expo, Hammer Down host Mike Bush dives deeper into the future of freight with a hands-on look at Windrose Technology’s electric Class 8 trucks. Joined by Joseph Jaramillo, Driver Supervisor at Talon Logistics, Mike takes a test drive to experience the smooth ride, dual digital displays, and unique features—like advanced regen modes and a…

Read More
ball valve
Zero-Friction Flow: Trillium Launches the Red Point® Non-Contact Rising Stem Ball Valve to Cut Downtime, Boost Safety, and Perform in Demanding Applications
June 30, 2025

Join host Michelle Dawn Mooney for this special episode of FlowCast by Trillium Flow Technologies, as she sits down with Fred Jansen, General Manager of Trillium’s Netherlands facility, and Pepijn Esman, Engineering Manager for Red Point, to unveil the non-contact Rising Stem Ball Valve (RSBV)—a breakthrough engineered for extreme-service applications across oil &…

Read More
student success
The AI-Powered Edge in Education: How LearningClues Is Enabling Student Success with Co-founder and CEO Dr. Perry Samson
June 30, 2025

As AI continues to reshape education, institutions face a growing challenge in ensuring students succeed without compromising engagement or integrity. Today’s college students are often juggling jobs, family, and coursework, leading to limited study time and increased dropout risk. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 40% of full-time undergraduates and 74% of…

Read More
AI Strategist
Why Enterprises Need an AI Strategist and Why It Should Be a Marketer
June 30, 2025

In this episode of The Marketing AI SparkCast, Aby Varma, founder of Spark Novus, a leading consultancy that partners with marketing leaders to adopt and scale AI responsibly and strategically, talks with Nicola Smith, Senior AI Programs Advisor at Southwest Airlines. They explore how enterprises can move beyond tool experimentation to embed AI into…

Read More