FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Graziella DiNuzzo
609-680-7670
gdinuzzo@wtcphila.org
 
Linda Conlin to Transition as President of The World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia
After 13 years of dedicated service, Conlin will step down from her role later this year.
 
Philadelphia, (July 28, 2022) – The World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia (WTCGP) announced today that President Linda Conlin will transition out of the role she has held after 13 years of service. The WTCGP Board has appointed a Committee to conduct the search for a new president.
​
“I was fortunate to have the opportunity at the WTCGP to continue to work in a field that I know and enjoy with a supportive Board and talented team – all dedicated to helping our small businesses and communities grow through global trade,” says Conlin. “Despite the challenges that the global economy has faced these last few years, I am optimistic about the future and the ability of the WTCGP to bring the benefits of trade to more small businesses, including minority- and women-owned businesses, expanding the impact to more communities in the Greater Philadelphia region.”

During her tenure, the WTCGP became recognized as Greater Philadelphia’s preeminent nonprofit trade services provider, as well as a leading member of the World Trade Centers Association (WTCA), made up of more than 300 members worldwide, where Conlin served on a number of advisory committees and councils. Under her leadership, the WTCGP became one of the most effective economic development organizations and catalysts for economic growth and job creation in the region. Over the past thirteen years, Southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey companies assisted by the WTCGP’s trade team recorded a total of $1.7B in increased export sales, supporting and generating thousands of family-sustaining jobs through global trade.

“As Chair, I have had the great honor of working closely with Linda and have seen firsthand the incredible impact she has made on our organization. I want to sincerely thank Linda for her tireless dedication to the WTCGP, and I look forward to her future support of the WTCGP and initiatives she championed,” says Gary Biehn, Partner, White & Williams and Chairman of the WTCGP Board. “I am confident that Linda will continue to make an impact in our communities and the international work that has been her passion.”

Having previously served as Assistant Secretary for Trade Development in the U.S. Department of Commerce and later as Vice Chair of the Export-Import Bank, Conlin brought to the region her knowledge of trade and trade policy, leveraging her prior experience to forge important partnerships with leading international trade agencies and departments, including the Export-Import Bank, the World Bank, and the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, to name a few. Through these partnerships, the WTCGP expanded access to trade finance and other services for local exporters.

Lauren Swartz, President & CEO, World Affairs Council of Philadelphia remarks, “Linda’s leadership has empowered a group of diverse, thriving businesses across our region to become stronger, more stable and grow thanks to expanding sales around the world. Her impact, as a sage mentor and ready partner, on those of us working to grow the local economy through trade will be long lasting. The World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia remains a pillar of our region’s economic development strategy and Linda’s leadership will be missed!”

Over the past thirteen years, the WTCGP received over $3M in grant support from the U.S. Economic Development Administration, providing resources essential to the support of the region’s small business exporters. Under Conlin’s leadership, the WTCGP remained a leading Regional Export Network Partner with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, accounting for up to one-quarter of the state’s overall export results.

“Linda Conlin has been a leader and a driving force behind the World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia for over 13 years,” John Curley, Vice President of Sales & Marketing for Sandmeyer Steel, recounts. “Her international experience and vision of trade have enabled many Pennsylvania companies to participate in global markets.”

To highlight the importance of trade as a tool for local economic growth and family-sustaining job creation, Conlin oversaw the production of events like the WTCGP’s Annual Global Business Conference (GBC) and World Trade Centers Day Awards Celebrations, bringing together the best of thought leadership in the industry to Philadelphia’s business community and recognizing companies for their global achievement.

“… Linda is truly a one-in-a-lifetime leader who could always be relied upon for her incredible knowledge on matters of international trade as well as for her impeccable organizational talent,” says Robin van Puyenbroeck, Executive Director - Business Development for the WTCA. “I am privileged to have had the opportunity to work with Linda and to receive her counsel on many matters, for which I am very grateful. While Linda will be dearly missed in the day-to-day I know she will never be far away from the WTCA – or from contributing to the promotion and facilitation of international trade.”

In its 20th anniversary year, Conlin has positioned the WTCGP well for the organization’s next decade and beyond, with the launch of its new, Selling to the World initiative, aimed at expanding exports for the region’s small- and medium-sized businesses with a focus on opening global opportunity to minority and women-owned enterprises.
The WTCGP board, staff, members and partners with whom Conlin has worked over the years are thankful for her dedicated leadership and commitment to its mission of “bringing growth and prosperity to businesses, communities and neighborhoods in Greater Philadelphia and worldwide through global trade and investment.”
Applications for the role of WTCGP President may be sent to info@wtcgp.org.
 
About the World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia: The World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia (WTCGP) is a nonprofit, membership-based organization that accelerates global business growth for companies in Southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey. Since 2002, WTCGP has served as a catalyst for regional economic growth and job creation, helping area companies generate over $2.2B in incremental export sales in the region. WTCGP is a member of the World Trade Centers Association (WTCA). Visit wtcphila.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Philadelphia, (March 21, 2022) - WTCGP President Linda Conlin has been nominated for a World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) Champion Award under the category of Member of the Year. The awards program is designed to recognize outstanding contributions from individual World Trade Centers within the WTCA network, and in their local and global communities. Winners will be announced at the 2022 WTCA General Assembly (GA) in April.

Along with representatives from world trade centers in Denver, Los Angles, St. Louis, and Toronto, Conlin was also appointed to the WTCA’s five-member North American Regional Advisory Council (NARAC). Serving 54 members in the United States and Canada, and following the success of Advisory Councils established for Europe and Latin America, the NARAC will oversee the development and implementation of a regional strategic plan to guide the programs and services to meet the region’s needs, challenges and priorities. 

About The World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia (WTCGP): A nonprofit, membership-based organization, the WTCGP accelerates global business growth for companies in Southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey by providing customized, one-on-one trade counseling, market research, educational programs, trade mission support, business networking events and powerful connections to customers and partners worldwide. Visit www.wtcphila.org.   

Michelle Boyles
Director of Communications
World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia
215-384-6538
Mboyles@wtcphila.org

Philadelphia, (March 18, 2022) - The World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia President Linda Conlin speaks with Dr. Kris Singh, Founder, President and CEO of Holtec International.
 
Linda Conlin:   Dr. Singh, when you founded Holtec International in Marlton, N.J. over three decades ago, you described yourself as having ‘small capital, but big ambitions.’ Since then, Holtec has experienced phenomenal growth and a far-reaching global presence with operations in 18 countries across five continents, including four world-class manufacturing plants. What was really the inspiration for you behind Holtec?
 
Dr. Kris Singh: I started my career before I received my Ph.D., I was already consulting for companies that were serving the nuclear industry starting in 1970. And I could see that this technology had a huge future. Carbon pollution was not yet a public discourse topic, but... I could see from the energy generation projections that carbon dioxide would continue to increase. While we didn't know precisely what might happen, it wasn't going to be anything good... Technical papers were being published, and I was generally familiar with [the subject]. I looked at it at the time as a 23-year-old and I said, I should be working with nuclear energy to make it better...
I also realized after Three Mile Island (TMI), which occurred in 1979, that these plants could be safer. They could be designed to be better, because if the public does not endorse it, if the public doesn't feel safe, then it does not have a future. And that is precisely what was happening. After TMI, public support for nuclear was dropping rapidly. And then seven years later came Chernobyl in 1986. And that was then the bottom for nuclear energy.
After that, even though the nuclear reactor that blew up under Russian-controlled Chernobyl back in 1986 was a unique reactor designed to produce plutonium, it was being run to produce plutonium along with the generation of electricity... That doesn't happen in the west, but people don't differentiate. People looked at Chernobyl as another example of how dangerous nuclear power is. I founded Holtec that same year with the mission to make nuclear safer and take every area where nuclear energy was dealing with new problems and work on them and solve them.
Ukraine at the time had the third largest number of nuclear reactors in Europe, and they were Russian reactors. And as I said, they could stand - I thought at the time - more improvement and safety updates. We went to Ukraine to see what we could do in their PAVER program and I found people to be so wonderful and the technology base in their country to be so fulfilling that I opened an office there.
 
Linda Conlin:   So, you were a visionary long before capturing carbon and carbon emissions became common language and recognized as an environmental concern. Some years later, you were there in Chernobyl with World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia Board Chairman, Gary Biehn whose law firm, White and Williams, assisted Holtec in negotiating the contract for the dry storage project. Mr. Biehn also shared with me a photo of you and then President of Ukraine, Viktor Yushchenko, signing that contract back in 2007.
At that signing, Dr. Singh, you emphasized how Holtec's double-wall storage containers - manufactured right here in Pennsylvania - met the strict Ukrainian regulatory standards for the storage of spent nuclear fuel. Starting with Chernobyl and the company's long history in the country, can you share with us what it is like to do business in Ukraine?
 
Dr. Kris Singh: Well, in any foreign country, of course you have to adjust to all the rules and regulations in the country, but Ukraine is a democracy… And in doing business in that country, you could rely on the rule of law. It is a country that values democracy and you see that in the way they conduct themselves. I saw that in Ukraine, that doing business in the country was not too different from doing business in the United States...
I've found that their technical experts are great and they have a brain drain going because the country has not been able to give them remunerative employment. And I said that to President Zelensky, when I saw him a few months ago, that he's got to do things to grow the nuclear economy, particularly because it holds so much promise. The country has so much technical talent. I still kept the staff there and we are continuing to do work there. Ukrainian engineers are working for our U.S. plants through Holtec.
 
Linda Conlin:   I think what you are saying about your business relationship is also a reflection on the people, on their democracy and their fierce protection of it. Now, as Russian troops are encircling Kyiv, many people are saying the Ukrainian military was underestimated. And on the other hand, the ability of the Russian military and forces perhaps were overestimated. But you have people in Kyiv, Ukraine. What are these people saying to you right now?
 
Dr. Kris Singh: Well, if you summarize, their attitude is one of defiance. They are going to stand up. Many of them are torn by the fact that their families are in Russia. They have family-to-family connections, and many of them are torn by the situation. But when it comes to uniting behind the cause to save Ukraine’s democracy, they're all united. You can see that in President Zelensky, who has been the face of the country’s resolve.
And I think that you will see in the leadership of the country. Whether they are in power or they're out of power, they're all united in preserving their democracy. And a country that is as literate and educated as Ukraine, you cannot suppress by military force. I presume Mr. Putin understands that and if he understands it, he should reverse course before more damage is done... Ukrainians are fired up to be a democracy. They have given blood before. They're going to stand up for themselves and we should support them in every way we can.
 
Linda Conlin: I'd like to turn now particularly to the Chernobyl nuclear plant. With your knowledge of the nuclear industry and the development of technology, would you share with us your perspective of what these Russian actions mean for the safe operation and fuel storage at these facilities and the possible ramifications, not only for people in Ukraine, but Western Europe? What are you most concerned about?
 
Dr. Kris Singh: Well, my biggest concern is that the Russians haven't put those plants under supervision of their nuclear people right now. They seem to be run by the military and of course, the Russian soldiers don't know anything about nuclear. They don't know where the vulnerability is and the risk is that they will do something foolish that may lead to a serious accident.
For example, the Chernobyl site had the world's largest concentration of used nuclear fuel in deep water pools. That's how it's kept cool. That fuel is supposed to be moved every week into dry storage that we have built, but it takes time. It's going to take eight to 10 years to get it all out of the pools and into dry storage. The Zaporizhzhia plant near Enerhodar is even more risky because it's got active fuel that's been recently discharged, meaning that it's still quite energetic. I hope that they don't mess with it.

Linda Conlin:   All the more reason, as you've often said, that having these facilities under civilian control is absolutely necessary. And hopefully those with the proper expertise are involved in this case… this leads me to another question. In your years of experience working closely with Ukraine, can you share your personal thoughts on the evolution of U.S./Ukraine relations?
 
Dr. Kris Singh: Well, the U.S. regard for Ukraine and the country’s leadership has grown over time. Former President Yushchenko, for example, was widely regarded all over the world. The city of Philadelphia gave him the Freedom Medal, along with people like Nelson Mandela and others who have received that medal. President Zelensky, I must tell you, has somewhat surprised me. I did not expect him to be a modern-day Churchill, but better looking than Churchill. What he’s done is amazing. And his heroic standing up to Putin will go down in history as a great act of leadership. No question... He has the support of the political class in Ukraine, which is always bickering, like a proper democracy, but when it comes to their country, they're all united and that's heartwarming to see.
 
Linda Conlin:   Well, he has certainly not only rallied his own people, but he's rallied the world around him and around the people of Ukraine... We wanted to talk to you about the world economy, given the large global footprint that Holtec has. What challenges do you see that the current situation in Ukraine creates for the global economy, both in the short- and in the long-term? And, what does it mean for the future of nuclear energy?
 
Dr. Kris Singh: Well, the global economy is going to be severely affected - no question. I think the days of free trade amongst countries is coming to an end. The world is going to be again, I'm afraid, back in ‘blocks.’ Russia is going to be ostracized unless Mr. Putin changes his direction and recognizes the value of his wager. Russia will be isolated. Russia is a supplier of important raw materials [like] petroleum products... The prices of materials are gyrating wildly... And it's happening of course at gasoline pumps. You see the price of gasoline going up.
The world is in for a major economic disruption. And where the chips will fall at the end, I'm afraid will equate to increased inflation across economies and reduced economic growth everywhere in the world... The effect will be significant. I'm not an economist, but I am a businessman and I see how the economic forces work. It's not a good forecast for the world. Now for nuclear, I think that overall people will realize the value of clean energy. People will realize the lack of dependence on fossil fuels from a country under an autocracy is necessary to free ourselves from such dependence... Nuclear energy will benefit from world leaders recognizing that maybe their total faith in stable global trade was misplaced.
But, I'll say it again for people who may not have the connection to Ukraine or with those who are the in the country, please understand, it's a humanitarian crisis. And what happens in Ukraine will reverberate for decades around the world. If democracy loses, if a dictator is able to suppress the will of the people, it will be catastrophic for all of us. So please help. Please help the beleaguered people of Ukraine.
 
About The World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia (WTCGP): A nonprofit, membership-based organization, the WTCGP accelerates global business growth for companies in Southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey by providing customized, one-on-one trade counseling, market research, educational programs, trade mission support, business networking events and powerful connections to customers and partners worldwide. Visit www.wtcphila.org.   

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Philadelphia, (March 18, 2022) - Philadelphia-area native Michelle Boyles joined the staff of the WTCGP as Director of Communications in February 2022. She is an experienced editor, having managed myriad Business-to-Business publications including Philly Biz, South Jersey Biz, Region’s Business and CEO Report – where she also served as Director of Events – as well as trade publications like Industrial Maintenance & Plant Operations Magazine, Optometric Management and the Neal-Award-winning Review of Optometry. Most recently, Michelle served as Communications Director for the local nonprofit Commonwealth Youthchoirs.

Michelle brings a wealth of communications know-how to the team with an extensive background in media relations, event planning, budget negotiations, web and social media management and relationship building.

About The World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia (WTCGP): A nonprofit, membership-based organization, the WTCGP accelerates global business growth for companies in Southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey by providing customized, one-on-one trade counseling, market research, educational programs, trade mission support, business networking events and powerful connections to customers and partners worldwide. Visit www.wtcphila.org.   ​

By Graziella DiNuzzo

I sat down with Stephen Anderson, Founder of Marquis Advisory Group and newest member of the World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia, to learn more about his history and how Marquis came into existence. 

In October 1961, you were able to walk into The New York Times lobby on 43rd street in Manhattan and ask for directions to the Human Resources Department. And over the Christmas holiday, when you were at home in Jamestown, New York with your parents, you received a telegram asking you to report to work as a journalist in training. 

How did you manage that?

"I am not sure. My journalism experience was limited to my college newspaper and The Chautauqua Daily, a paper of Chautauqua Institution in western New York State. Once at the Times my part was not important. What I could do now was on-the-job training that was semi-structured, informal, but with great mentors."

So, what made you want to be a journalist?

"My great uncle laid the idea in my mind. He was a lawyer, but never talked to me about law. His favorite recollections were about being a young journalist for the Jamestown Post Journal in Jamestown, New York, where we lived, and a free-lance journalist for the Canadian Pacific news. Great stories, including being sent to Panama to report on the unfinished Panama Canal. He was maybe 20 years old."

It's certain that curiosity to find the truth and the courage to tell it are in Anderson's blood. 
​
"After working at the Times for three years, the Guild, the journalist's union, went on strike. McGraw-Hill, the publishing company on 42nd street at the time, was hiring. I landed a job there, assigned to covering emerging technologies, like Xerox, RCA, and others like TelePrompter. In one article I compared TelePrompter and Lear, who were competing in the reel-to-reel tape cartridge player for automobiles. Inadvertently my article suggested an alternative strategy for the auto display target. A few days later, TelePrompter asked if I would join their division responsible for the tape player. And my wife and I moved from Manhattan to Southern New Jersey. "

Following his position at TelePrompter, Anderson held executive management positions which two Fortune 500 companies based in Philadelphia, (ESB Incorporated and Westmoreland Coal Company) both of whom have subsequently been acquired. His roles in both organizations were working with senior management on strategy and increasing share price. 

"ESB had global reach, manufacturing and recognized brands in Ray-O-Vac and Exide batteries. But in the 1970s batteries were not exciting to the investment community. We focused on the future. Developed battery powered cars and buses and tested them for two years. We got the attention of Polaroid and developed the battery imbedded in every Polaroid film pack. We focused on the application of batteries for the medical market, and it worked. ESB was purchased by a Canadian company for a price per share significantly greater than market." 

It was with Westmoreland where Anderson was most challenged. 

"I was asked to come in and help with their share price. But in order to do that I saw they needed a lot of changes internally. Fortunately, I had the backing of the Chairman. Traditional labor practices with the United Mine Workers were a problem. Changing the management tradition of an established industry gave resistance."

Anderson also helped Westmoreland start a mobile book program with West Virginia's library to bring books to children and adults, and reading programs to isolated villages. He also helped facilitate Westmoreland grants to West Virginia colleges and universities for environmental research, and also sponsored morning children's TV shows in regions where Westmoreland had employees in Virginia, West Virginia, Colorado, and Montana. 

And then a deadly explosion occurred. Five miners were killed in a Westmoreland mine in West Virginia.

'I flew down to manage the press that were showing up at the scene of the explosion. We held updates every three hours for 48 hours until the bodies were recovered. Then, an NBC TV reporter asked," Who is responsible for the explosion?" I had anticipated this question and asked it very quickly saying that management is responsible. Well, all the camera lights went out and every newspaper and TV reporter ran to their offices and phones. When I returned to Philadelphia the next morning, our attorney stood at my office door and started reaming me for my statement. Behind him stood the Chairman, who tapped the attorney on the shoulder and said, "Steve did the right thing. If you cannot handle it. I will get someone who can."

Subsequently, after attending a lecture by Edward Deming during an MBA course at University of Pennsylvania, Steve instituted Deming's principles, later branded as Six Sigma, at Westmoreland. Originally created by an American engineer, Bill Smith at Motorola, it basically, is a process in which 99.99966% of all opportunities to produce some feature of a part are statistically expected to be free of defects. Westmoreland trained all of its employees, including the miners. A major outcome, in addition to the miners and their bosses collaborating, was an independent contract negotiated by the President of Westmoreland, Chris Seglem. 

In 1993, Steve and his wife moved to San Francisco and established his consulting practice, originally branded as Six Sigma Group and later changed to Marquis Advisory Group. Drawing on his wealth of knowledge, Anderson understood that the key to a successful consulting company is to bring a highly specialized team of professionals together to provide companies customized, innovative, growth-oriented strategies for success. 

Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was Anderson's first client. 

"Silicon Valley Bank was founded on the need for the investors in startups, the venture capitalists, to have a reliable bank that understood early-stage businesses. We were brought in to help the bank improve shareholder confidence, retain customers, and use the concepts of Six Sigma to make the bank's administration as close to 100% accurate and functionally perfection as possible."

Marquis' first international client was an Australian cancer research laboratory that was publicly traded on both Australia's ASX and U.S. Nasdaq. 

Today, Marquis clients have included a Singapore manufacturer of miniature motors and controllers used to manufacture computer chips, medical equipment, a Silicon Valley pioneer in Internet consumer communications and an Indonesian seafood exporting company and a precious metals mining company based in South Africa. 

Since returning to Philadelphia in 2020, Anderson reconnected into a business region he had known but lost touch with while on the West Coast. In 2021 Peter Longstreth, President of the Consular Corps Association of Philadelphia, recommended to Wilfred Muskens to join Marquis. Muskens is the Honorary Consul in Philadelphia for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and U.S. Trade Representative for Kutch Region, State of Gujarat, India. Jerry Sorkin, Consulate of Tunisia in Philadelphia has also joined Marquis this year.
 
When I asked Wilfred, a member of WTC, why he selected Marquis he responded, “I was looking for a professional environment where I would be able to work with a diverse group of experts on a project-by-project basis, while remaining independent. Marquis Advisory allows me to bring an exceptional set of skills to the table when meeting with potential clients.”
 
Marquis has also entered a “partnership-affiliation” with the Philadelphia headquartered, internationally respected economic research firm, Econsult Solutions Inc. (ESI) and will close on a similar agreement with Mindhive Pty Ltd, a Brisbane, Australia firm that is considered a leading analytical software for crowd sourced, online platform research data development.
 
“These partnership-affiliations provide our clients with the most advanced research service and the leading provider of information via cloud sourcing,” says Anderson.
 
In addition to his responsibility to lead Marquis, Anderson serves as chairman of an IT AI company, Insight Systems Inc. that enables large organizations like the U.S. Department of Energy, to control contracts and manage budgets on a very timely basis.
 
https://www.marquisadvisory.com

By Graziella DiNuzzo

Fred Winter recalls living in tents and trailers in various South African countries like Angola, Congo, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and of course South Africa as the most developed and richest mining country with many other mining engineers from all over Europe.

“I was recruited by the South African Bureau of Mines who did exploration work for the largest mining corporation in the world like Anglo-American, Anglo Vaal, BHP, Rio Tinto etc. After a number of years I was hired by Siemens AG to sell electro equipment to the various mining companies. I left my home in Germany as a young man to work alongside miners who excavated metal, minerals and concentrates from open pit and underground mines. We worked down in the mines for minerals about 2 miles underground. The most interesting mines were the platinum mines on the Highveld which are up to more than 1.5 miles underground. It was an interesting and volatile time, but I got along well with the miners from all over the world and the predominant local work force.”
​
As a newly arrived immigrant in the U.S., Fred continued his career as a geologist and engineer and would one day stumble upon an opportunity. He attended an auction in 1983 and bought the assets of a metal processing company in Camden, New Jersey and started F.W. Winter Inc. & Co.

​FW Winter in the 1990s.

Today, F.W Winter, Inc. & Co. is the leading industry supplier of metal and alloys in powder and lump form.
I sat with Fred Winter and his daughter Devon, in the wood paneled conference room at their manufacturing facility, proudly tucked next to the Ben Franklin Bridge in Camden, NJ.

What exactly does F.W. Winter produce and distribute?
“Chromium Metal, Low Carbon Ferro Chrome, High Carbon Ferro Chrome and Special Alloy Powders,” Devon quickly answers.
​
Okay, what do you do with them? Please answer like I am a fifth grader.
“We crush them to specification to use for specific applications,” Devon says. We import raw materials and also develop customized methods for the processing of customer-supplied materials. All products are manufactured by utilizing one or more of the following processes: crushing, grinding/milling, screening, classifying, and blending.”

​The website outlines the following applications: Welding electrodes, Wire Manufacture, Hard-Faced Steel Plates, Chromium Aluminum Hardeners, Metal Injection Molding.

Devon picks up her cell phone, “like the outside of your phone, any product which requires specific metal.”  

“Car engine chains, auto parts, welding bars, lots of uses in the aerospace industry.”

How much international business do you do?
“In 1983, we immediately began supplying to predominantly U.S. and South American customers because our main customer base were companies who produce welding electrodes,” explains Fred.

“We currently do 70 percent domestic and 30 percent international business,” adds Devon. “We have a lot of business in the Midwest and have customers in Europe, Africa, Australia, and Asia.”

How did you get started in the family business?
“I started working for my dad helping with logistics and sales while working on my M.S. in Television Management and M.B.A at Drexel University in 2014. I attended University of Vermont and majored in Communications and Entrepreneurship.”

In 2018, Devon helped the company receive ISO 9001 certification, a globally recognized standard for Quality Management Systems (QMS).  And in 2018 she worked to obtain F.W. Winter’s LEAN Manufacturer certification which reduces times within the production system and provides better response times from suppliers. All in the same year.

In 2019, Fred appointed his daughter Devon to become Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. “This is a non-traditional role for women, and Devon is very smart and capable. She also has a good relationship with the staff,” says Fred.

“Ah but with some customers, it wasn’t that easy, and I wasn’t accepted right away, “ adds Devon.  “This is a male-dominated field and some just wanted to speak with Fred. But I am grateful to those customers who have become mentors.”

Devon currently sits on the Board of Women in Manufacturing.

“People don’t understand the amount of technicality and artistry that goes into manufacturing. Manufacturing careers offer an immense opportunity for young people. At 30, I have seen so much, and it has taken me all over the world. Today manufacturing is more interesting than people think. It combines marketing, sales, global politics, supply chains, so much – not mundane at all.”  
​
According to the, US Department of Commerce women make up about 47% of the total workforce and only about 30% are employed in the manufacturing industries, and only 1 in 4 manufacturing leaders are women.
​
We take a walk through the plant and meet Clark Davis who has been working in the plant for 39 years. “I’ve been here a long time; he yells over the loud sound of the mills currently in crushing mode. I’ll tell you anything you need to know, he says laughing. ”

​Left to Right:  Wayne Howell with Devon Winter
​
Devon stops to say hello to another plant worker, Wayne Howell, who has worked with the Winter family for 21 years. He shows us raw minerals he is working with.

​Metals ready to go into the mill

As an essential business, F.W. Winter remained open throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We continued to pay our employees during COVID, even though we weren’t very busy,” says Fred. “It was the right thing to do.”

“We are currently at 21 people and looking to hire. As some employees are beginning to retire." Devon explains.

​“Fred won’t say but over the years he also helped some staff with personal expenses such as funeral costs, etc. Fred always took care of the staff and worked alongside the plant operators. He never expected them to do anything he wouldn’t do.”

Daughter, Devon and Dad, Fred Winter standing next to one of the 18 mills inside the manufacturing plant

In 2015, F.W. Winter received the Member Company of the Year award from the World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia. “We provide the highest quality and service and have built a corporate culture and team where we strive to adopt existing advances in manufacturing,” Devon confirms.

“We used to do everything by hand,” recalls Fred.

As Fred begins to tell me a story, Devon politely interrupts and say she would like to one day document her father’s adventurous life in the metal industry.
​
“Fred is ahead of the times to enable and promote a woman in the metal industry.”

By Graziella DiNuzzo

Ask Erika L. White about her work and she smiles brightly. She loves her job and has been recognized for her accomplishments. Recently, the National Diversity and Leadership Council named Erika 2021 DEI Champion, a well-deserved award for a woman who has spent the last 20 years in multi-cultural marketing, and the last six dedicated to DEI.
 
It isn’t surprising that in February 2021, Pennoni hired Erika as its first DEI Program Officer. Pennoni has a proven history of working to advance DEI goals, and this past June 2020 Dave DeLizza, President and CEO of Pennoni, joined other Philadelphia business leaders to sign a “commitment to equity,” penned by The Chamber of Commerce of Greater Philadelphia.
 
In a press release statement, DeLizza, reiterates, “We will rely on Erika’s expertise to guide Pennoni in creating a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion program with measurable goals and outcomes that will attract diverse talent to our firm.”  

“I can tell that the culture of Pennoni is already one of inclusion and is committed to the advancement of diversity, equity and inclusion. We already have a long history of working with a variety of STEM outreach programs and we actively work with several diverse subcontractors to fulfill the needs of our clients,” explains Erika.

Erika’s LinkedIn page, chronicles the almost weekly DEI zoom conversations she has been invited to attend as an expert. She serves as a member of the Board of Trustees for the Shipley School as well as the Board of Directors for the Center City Proprietors Association, and is co-founder of The Philadelphia Diversity Professionals Consortium. But Erika is never too busy to volunteer as a mentor to young women, or act as a regular volunteer in her faith.

Erika’s leadership in the DEI space began in 2007 as Director of the West Oak Lane Jazz and Arts Festival and the Director of Community and Government Affairs for the Ogontz Avenue Revitalization Corporation.
​
As Senior Diversity Coordinator for Ballard Spahr law firm, Erika helped contribute to the pipeline of diverse lawyers. Most recently, Erika worked as The Pennsylvania Convention Center’s Diversity & Inclusion Manager, “I was able to cultivate a strategy that had a focus of three key elements, supplier diversity, workforce development and supporting the diverse conventions and conferences.”
 
Numerous written reports say the same thing, and 15Five.com sums it up, “when you make DEI a priority, every facet of your organization benefits, including the bottom line.”  
 
But there can be challenges.
 
Erika warns that if you don’t do important initial first steps, corporations may find themselves spending unnecessary time and money on consultants and conducting trainings that don’t align with the overall strategic plan and organization’s culture.
 
“The greatest challenge is the scale of their program and trying not to boil the ocean. A lot of times employers want to make a real impact and make it quickly and largely through making statements, conducting a lot of trainings, programs and initiatives. It may be hard for the company to manage all of those programs and have them feel organic to the culture of the organization. It’s like when you are trying to graft a plant or flower to make a hybrid, the process is very delicate and if done correctly, the process allows the two plants to work together to make something new and strong. It is the same concept with starting a successful diversity, equity and inclusion program. There must be an understanding or assessment of the existing structure and culture of the organization then you can begin to graft the elements of a DEI program into the DNA of the organization. You do this through a detailed assessment of the organization that can include a review of the policies and procedures, current programs, interviews of key stake holders, focus groups, surveys of the workforce, and then goal and strategy mapping.”
 
For corporations looking to rollout a DEI plan, Erika advises hiring an experienced DEI officer who is well versed in the principles of the work such as bias and cultural competence but also understands the strategy and business case behind implementing a successful DEI program.
 
“The support of senior leadership is a must, and the program must be routed in an established business element of the organization. For example, at Pennoni I am the first DEI officer and I report directly to our Vice President of Human Resources, Joyce Hess. I also have a dotted line to our Chief Operating Officer, David Pennoni and our Chief Executive Officer, David DeLizza with the full support of the Board of Directors. When the DEI officer is connected to a fundamental business element like Human Resources and the Operations Department, they have access to the necessary data and the overall operations of the organization.”

What can we expect to see at Pennoni in the coming months?
 
“Our next steps will be to add structure to our current activities and create a diversity, equity and inclusion strategic plan based on our overarching three pillars of Excellent Reputation, Profit and Growth and our values of Honesty, Integrity and Service,” Erika smiles.
 
Congratulations Erika and Pennoni!

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​On the morning of March 25th, our virtual “Green Room” was packed with stellar speakers ready to go LIVE for the 17th Annual Global Business Conference presented in partnership with the Temple University Fox School of Business and its Center for International Business Education and Research. Over the next 3 hours, participants listened, learned, and asked important questions.

Robin van Puyenbroeck, Executive Director of Business Development, World Trade Centers Association, kicked off the conference as emcee. Robin effortlessly moved the conference along on point and on time. Next, our President, Linda Conlin, Ronald C. Anderson, Dean, Fox School of Business, Temple University, and Michael Rashid, Director of Commerce, City of Philadelphia, delivered welcoming remarks to more than 150 attendees.

Our first speaker of the day, Derek Burleton, Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist, TD Bank Group, took on the task of giving a global economic outlook for 2021. The detailed presentation showed a promising future for American companies, especially those located in the Greater Philadelphia Region.

Next came the first Keynote of the conference, "Exporting Fearlessly – Reducing Risk and Expanding Sales" with Judith D. Pryor, Member Board of Directors, Export-Import Bank of the United States and Linda Conlin. The pair reminded the audience of how EX-IM, through local banks and the WTCGP, offers export finance products to increase sales and minimize the risk of buyer non-payment.

Our second Keynote saw Osagie Imasogie, Co-Founder and Senior Managing Partner, PIPV Capital, and Stephen S. Tang, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer, OraSure Technologies, sitting down for a free-flowing fireside chat. The two spoke candidly on the lasting global impact of COVID-19 and strengthening the contribution of the region’s life sciences sector and entrepreneurial class.

Following a short intermission, Gary P. Biehn, Board Chairman, WTCGP, welcomed the audience back and introduced our newest panelists. Moderator Richard Deeg, Dean, College of Liberal Arts, Temple University, led the "Markets in Transition" panel featuring nationally recognized experts Craig Allen, President, US-China Business Council, Marc Mealy, Senior Vice President - Policy, US-ASEAN Business Council, and David Hamod, President and CEO, National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce. Regardless of the challenges faced in these markets – the countries in these regions are open for business.

Closing the conference with a bang, our member companies shared why exporting is good for the bottom line and the lessons learned - the “good, the bad and the not so ugly“ side of exporting, led by moderator Tifphani White-King, JD, EA, Principal, National Tax Practice Leader, Mazars USA. Panelists John M. Curley III, Vice President of International Sales and Global Marketing, Sandmeyer Steel Company, Barrett Fisher, President, Van Horn, Metz & Co., Inc, and David Whitman, CEO, Sunhillo Corporation, all agreed that resiliency pays off.

We take this time to reflect on another successful Global Business Conference and to offer our sincere thanks to our speakers for taking time to share their expertise and up-to-the minute intelligence on what’s happening in international business today, the sponsors who supported us financially, and the professional and student attendees who tuned in.