Workforce News

Washington, D.C. – As the National Association of Manufacturers and The Manufacturing Institute, the nonprofit workforce development and education partner of the NAM, continue to provide transformational support for the industry, the organizations announced key promotions to multiple divisions.

Among those being promoted at the NAM is Ken Monahan, to Vice President of International Economic Affairs after serving as a member of the policy team since 2015.

“Ken has been a pivotal member of our team during a volatile trade policy environment and adeptly helped our members navigate through it,” said NAM President and CEO and MI Chairman of the Board Jay Timmons. “He took on complex issues created by the pandemic and was instrumental in our successful campaign in support of U.S. congressional passage of the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement. His expertise and experience will help manufacturers shape trade policy as we work with the incoming Biden administration.”

Additional promotions in the NAM’s policy, communications and membership divisions, as well as the Manufacturing Leadership Council, include the following:

• Kristie Arslan has been promoted to Senior Director of Member and Board Relations.
• Charles Crain has been promoted to Senior Director of Tax and Domestic Economic Policy.
• Alyssa Dixon has been promoted to Associate Director of Conference Operations.
• Nina Hawkins has been promoted to Senior Director of Membership Operations.
• Brian James has been promoted to Senior Director of Conference Operations.
• Susie Larson has been promoted to Manager in the Office of the President.
• Kevin Mullooly has been promoted to Director of Editorial.
• Joe Murphy has been promoted to Associate Director of Rapid Response.
• Megan Stewart has been promoted to Assistant Vice President of Membership.
• Dan Witherington has been promoted to Director of Council Development within the MLC.

The MI announced that Herb Grant has been named its new Vice President of Operations after serving as Director of the NAM’s Creators Wanted initiative, responsible for the operations of the manufacturing’s largest campaign to change perceptions and close the skills gap, and in recent months the Creators Respond effort, which helped mobilize and support the industry’s response to COVID-19.

“The need to attract and retain a skilled workforce continues to be manufacturers’ top concern according to the NAM’s quarterly Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey, and the MI and the Creators Wanted campaign is needed more than ever to help close the skills gap facing our nation’s manufacturers as they work to produce needed supplies to battle the pandemic. Herb’s industry experience was vital to the national response in the past several months, and now as we look at what is needed to spur our economic recovery, he will serve an important role in accelerating and expanding the impact of the MI,” said MI Executive Director Carolyn Lee. “The tremendous expansion of the MI’s work in the past year speaks to those priorities, and this new position will lead an effort to build and expand the MI’s operational systems and processes to drive the mission execution and support the annual delivery of the MI’s programs.”

Additional promotions at the MI include the following:

• Jen White has been promoted to Senior Program Manager on the Heroes MAKE America team.
• Alexandra Becker has been promoted to Manager on the Workforce team.

“Manufacturers’ ability to meet the needs of the country and be the arsenal of democracy in the most challenging year since the great recession has been on full display,” said Timmons. “The NAM and MI’s leadership throughout the pandemic is made possible by the people that comprise our best-in-class staff. Each one of these individuals has gone above and beyond their current roles and repeatedly delivered results for manufacturers in America. In their new roles, they will be an integral part of moving our industry forward beyond the COVID-19 pandemic and addressing the challenges in the years ahead.”

-NAM-

The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12.3 million men and women, contributes $2.33 trillion to the U.S. economy annually and has the largest economic multiplier of any major sector and accounts for 63% of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the NAM or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org.

-Manufacturing Institute-

The MI grows and supports the manufacturing industry’s skilled workers for the advancement of modern manufacturing. The MI’s diverse initiatives support all workers in America, including women, veterans and students, through skills training programs, community building and the advancement of their career in manufacturing. As the workforce development and education partner of the NAM, the MI is a trusted adviser to manufacturers, equipping them with resources necessary to solve the industry’s toughest challenges. For more information on the MI, please visit www.themanufacturinginstitute.org/.