We are proud to announce that Norma Myers has been promoted to Supervisor in the Recut Department. During her 29-year tenure at Yazoo Mills, she has held numerous positions in the Recut Department starting out as a packer and working her way into her most current role as a Supervisor. Myers came to Yazoo with a manufacturing background, which is an industry she has always enjoyed working in.
In her new role, she manages 13 employees in the automatic recutter area. She ensures that her team is continuously checking quality, maintaining productivity, and moving workaround for her department to remain as efficient as possible.
She says “I would not be where I am today if it weren’t for my team members and keeping the ‘never stop learning’ mentality. Yazoo has given me opportunities to learn and train which in return allows me to contribute to helping our customers receive the best quality products in the industry.”
The advice she would give to our younger workers? She says “Be open-minded and grow with the company. If you are willing to apply yourself, future opportunities will present themselves. Be prepared to adapt and look for ways to continue helping the company evolve. Never be afraid to share an idea.”
Fun fact:
Question: If you could travel anywhere, where would it be?
Norma: I would definitely fly back to Vegas with my sister to explore the city and try my luck at a few games to hopefully win big!
We are proud to have Norma on our team and look forward to watching her lead continue to lead the Recut department to success. Congrats, Norma!
Larry Kuhn, a well-seasoned Yazoo veteran, has grown with our company during his tenure of two and a half decades. He started fresh out of high school, at the young age of 18 as a Baler & Winding Table and went on to hold positions in our Recut department as a packer, machine operator, setup operator, and lead. He never misses a beat, powers through busy workloads, and always greets you with a smile or a laugh.
We are proud of Larry’s hard work and the dedication he has given to our company while working here for the last 26 years. We would like to congratulate him on his promotion to Supervisor in our Recut Department! In his new role, Larry is in charge of eight employees in the Small I.D. department where they ensure that products are burr and trim-free. He also focuses on QA as well as managing bulk orders with a lot of pieces; anywhere from 10-40,000 sticks. He makes sure that his team is always on the ball, giving our customers high-quality products that fit their specifications.
You’re probably wondering “what’s kept him here so long?” Larry likes what he does and loves being able to work with his hands. He’s an innovative thinker and problem solver so the wheels are constantly spinning for him. He likes the convenience of working close to home, the unbeatable benefits that Yazoo has to offer, and the solid foundation that the company has built, not only for its customers but for its employees.
In his spare time, you’ll find him playing softball and basketball, finding new restaurants, and trying out new foods. Oh, and don’t be intimidated by his size, he’s truly a big teddy bear!
Congrats on your promotion, Larry. We’re excited to see you take your department to the next level!
Take a second to think about where you are in your current profession. Next, take a few minutes to think about all of the previous jobs and experience that have led you to your current role. What was the longest period of time that you stayed at a job? The average person changes jobs an average of 12 times during his or her career. In today’s society, people no longer work for one company for their whole career, retiring after 50+ years. Many workers spend five years or less in every job they hold. Is there loyalty any more when it comes to working for a company? The answer is yes and that company is Yazoo Mills.
Meet Steve McMaster – a long-tenured Yazoo employee that has been working for the company for over 36 years. He dove in head first into the manufacturing industry at the ripe age of 18-years-old as a Winding Operator in our Winding Department. Over the years, Steve proved that he wanted to work his way up by learning everything and anything he could. He proceeded to move into the role of Winding Lead to Recut Set-Up to Production Supervisor and then into his current role of over 20 years as Plant Manager.
As the Plant Manager, Steve’s days are packed with a lot of responsibilities. He oversees production and collaborates with department supervisors to obtain practices throughout the plant from start to finish and ensures that Yazoo is producing high-quality paper tubes and cores with exceptional level of service. In addition, he also works with suppliers to ensure we are receiving quality raw materials for efficient operation for our manufacturing team. When he’s not out on the plant floor, you can find Steve collaborating with Sales/Customer Service to meet our customers’ special requirements for their business such as core size, branding, packaging, etc.
Stability and projects that have challenged him are the secret to Steve’s longevity with the company. He likes that Yazoo continues to invest in its employees and the business and in turn, continues to grow by offering stability, challenges and opportunities for employees to excel into their next role with our team. What does he like best about working at Yazoo? That’s easy — a family-owned company that treats everyone like one large family and takes care of their employees. He says “The people are great to work with and stay once they are here; creating the family atmosphere. The competitive pay and great employee benefits as well as a very clean manufacturing environment definitely attract the right team members, who stay for the long-haul.”
In his spare time, you can find Steve with his family and grandkids. He is a handyman and loves working on all types of projects his kids send his way. Occasionally, you can find him at a NASCAR race during the season and recently, playing in corn-hole tournaments have become his new favorite thing to do to “relax.”
Congratulations, Steve, on your 36 years with the company. We are grateful for your knowledge, loyalty and expertise you have provided our team with. We look forward to having you on our team for the next 36+ years!
In today’s world, hardworking and dedicated employees seem to be hard to find. However, at Yazoo – those two adjectives describe our employees, which over 50% of them have been here for more than 10 years.
Meet Norma Myers – she started her career at Yazoo Mills 27 years ago in our Recut Department as a Packer. Since she started with the company, she has held numerous positions such as a Machine Operator, Trainer, and Floater. Through hard work, dedication, and willingness to learn, we are proud to announce Norma’s promotion into a Lead role within our Recut Department.
Within her new role, quality is her main concern. She makes sure that customer specifications, tolerances, etc. are correct and ready to be shipped out. Myers also helps with training employees, teaching them more effective ways to be efficient with the machines and order flow.
“I’ve been here for a long time and have seen so many positive changes to better the company and workforce. Yazoo puts their employees first and that’s one of the many reasons why I am still here, 27 years later!” Myers said. In her spare time, she likes to spend time creating memories with her family and friends, and finding new ways to make people laugh.
Congratulations on your promotion, Norma! We are glad to have you be a part of the Yazoo team.