Nichole H.

Nichole H. was born in Germany as part of a military family and participated in ROTC during college. After graduating, she was commissioned as an officer in the United States Navy. When the time came to transition into a civilian career, she explored opportunities to apply the technical skillset, logistical knowledge and managerial skills she gained while serving in the military.

She’s now a Plant Manager at Stanley Black & Decker’s Jackson, Tennessee Manufacturing Facility, where her military experience helps her support our operations.

“While serving in the Navy, I was encouraged to push boundaries so we could complete our missions with accuracy, timeliness and quality,” she shares. “In my civilian career, I'm using these principles to help us improve processes and meet production targets. And I’m being recognized by leadership and outside organizations for my impact.”

Serving Her Country. And Gaining Invaluable Experience.  

Nichole served in many capacities in the Navy. “I grew my leadership skills by ensuring I was involved with my teams in all scenarios and taking accountability for our actions every step of the way,” she shares. “It was a unique experience with several challenges that gave me the idea of what I wanted to look like as a leader.”

While working as a Repair Division Officer and Locker Officer, she had the opportunity to learn how the engine room and ship functioned. “Both of these roles gave me my technical skillset and understanding of engineering principles, which have proven valuable in my roles in manufacturing,” she says.

As she stepped into new roles, she gained experience with logistics, scheduling and planning and coordinating mission requirements between multiple ships. “I learned the importance of agility and flexibility to ensure that we met our targets,” she says. “These skills are valuable within the manufacturing scope as our businesses are everchanging.”

At the end of her military career, Nichole earned numerous accolades and recognitions for her exemplary organizational and managerial skills, logistical proficiency and effective communication.

Transitioning into a Civilian Career

Nichole learned about an opportunity at Stanley Black & Decker from a neighbor. During the interview process, she was immediately drawn to the company’s culture. “I could tell the fit was perfect. It felt like a family atmosphere. There was a balance of business and skill-related questions, along with questions about who I am outside of work and discussion of how they maintained work-life balance,” she says.

She continues, “The leadership team showed the qualities that I was looking for: integrity, accountability, teamwork, willingness to teach and to learn and an all-in approach where everything is approached as a united front.”

How She and Her Team Improve Our Processes

As Nichole transitioned into her civilian career, she applied the lessons she learned in the Navy to increase efficiencies and help the company meet its production targets. She worked on a continuous improvement program that resulted in savings of $1.2 million and the completion of 22 Kaizen Events — which refers to projects and initiatives aimed at refining processes and procedures.  

“Anything that would improve safety or business results was considered a Kaizen opportunity,” she explains. “I started by gaining an understanding of the current Kaizen process and where potential pain points were.”

Cross-functional teams were established for each target. These teams consisted of employees knowledgeable about the processes and people unfamiliar with them for their outside perspectives and fresh ideas.  

They met on a weekly cadence to explore opportunities to improve the facility. They prioritized continued sustainability for the improvements. “If we missed a target for more than two consecutive weeks, we’d reevaluate it to discover the root cause and see what actions were needed to get it back on track,” she explains. “Once a project was sustained for 90 days, it was considered successful.”

“This was truly a team effort, with everyone executing their roles and responsibilities to achieve the level of success we saw when it came to these Kaizen results.”

A Career Worth Recognizing

Her accomplishments at Stanley Black & Decker earned her an Eagle Award — an internal distinction recognizing employees who embody our values and deliver exceptional results. And in 2024, she was named a winner of the Manufacturing Institute’s Women MAKE Award, which recognizes women who exemplify leadership and positively impact their companies and communities.

“It’s very humbling to be recognized by my peers and senior levels of management,” she shares. “My goal is to bring the best version of myself to work each day and help lead the team through challenges.”

She continues, “The fact that my efforts are seen and recognized cements that I am at the right company, one with an empowering and inspiring culture, and I am very lucky to be a part of it. I am surrounded by influential leaders I can learn from, and I love that I can help others reach their potential.”