17. Inside Private Label and Contract Manufacturing with Lauren McNamara

What does it take to grow from a manager to an executive leader while navigating industry disruption, organizational change, and the realities of being a working parent?

In this episode, Angela Dodd sits down with Lauren McNamara, Senior VP of Business Management at SunOpta, to discuss her journey from brand management and marketing roles to executive leadership. Lauren shares the pivotal career decision that changed everything, the lessons she's learned leading through acquisitions and organizational growth, and why cross-functional experience is one of the most valuable investments young professionals can make.

The conversation also explores the future of food and beverage, including plant-based innovation, private label growth, supply chain challenges, protein trends, sustainability, and how manufacturers are helping brands bring products to market faster than ever before.

Whether you're an emerging professional, an experienced leader, or simply fascinated by where the food industry is headed, this episode is packed with practical insights on leadership, career growth, and navigating change with confidence.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

You have to be doing the work of the next level in your current role because you have to show people that you can do it. And I also think it gives you personally confidence that you can do it because you're already operating at that level and puts you in a position to be considered when those opportunities open up.

SPEAKER_00 0:16

Welcome to Women Who Make It. Real conversations with women in the food and beverage industry who are building careers, leading teams, and figuring it all out. After years of building females and food, I've had conversations with some of the most brilliant women in the industry. And they shared the real stuff. The pivots, the boundaries, the burnouts, and the moments of is this even working before it finally clicked? So I hit record, and now you get to hear it too. We're women who make it. So let's dig in. Welcome back to Women Who Make It, the podcast highlighting the women shaping the future of the food and beverage industry. I'm your host, Angela Dodd, founder and CEO of Females on Food, and today's conversation is with Lauren McNamara, senior VP of Business Management at Synopta. Now, Synopta is a company many consumers may not realize touches a huge portion of the food and beverage products that they interact with every single day. They're a leader in plant-based, better for you food and beverage manufacturing, producing products and ingredients across categories like oat milk, plant-based beverages, fruit snacks, broths, teas, and nutritional beverages through both private label and contract manufacturing partnerships. Lauren has built her career leading across commercial strategy, business management, commercialization, and growth. And during her time at Synopta, she has helped scale the plant-based business into a major stream of growth and revenue. Today, we're breaking it down. We're talking about rapid career growth, leading through change, and the future of food and beverage and what it takes to build businesses, teams, and impact within this industry. Lauren, welcome to the podcast. I am so excited for this conversation today, truly. This is one I've been looking forward to for a really long time. Well, thank you so much for having me. It's a true pleasure to be here, and I'm excited to chat with you. Awesome. Well, we have literally so much to get through today. And for our listeners that are just uh learning a bit more about you through the intro that we gave, you've had such an impressive career journey. One that's truly inspired me for a really, really long time, and you may not even know that. But you've you had a solid education. You moved into some marketing roles with General Mills and then found yourself at Sunopta. But what's super impressive is like you've been at Sunopta for roughly nine years. You entered as a director, but in the last nine years, you've risen into the senior VP of Business Management and you've helped scale their plant-based business into a major growth engine. When you look back on that trajectory, I'd love for you to share with everybody like, what do you think as you've reflected on that allowed you to really accelerate so quickly? And maybe you're like, girl, it's been 10 years. That wasn't quick at all. But I love yeah, I it's a lot of different things.

SPEAKER_01 3:04

Honestly, I think one, I came in to work for somebody that I've worked for before. So there was a very high level of trust. We already knew each other, we knew how to work well together. I was being bred in kind of for a specific purpose. And at the time, we didn't really have a marketing or a business management or a general management group. And so there was also an organizational need and opportunity for someone to come in and help build this. So I would say as a combination of things of organizational need for leaders and kind of this group understanding of the business coming in. I had done private label before, I had done co-manufacturing before. So I knew it how it worked. And I could take those learnings really quickly and ramp up to apply them to, you know, this company and the stage we were in. And then there were several really clear opportunities to me that I was able to bring forward to drive, drive the business for. And I think that came with, you know, recognition that I could grow the business, I could do what the business needed, and then I could think strategically.

SPEAKER_00 4:14

Nice. I I think that's a perfect combination, right? Both having the organizational need, but then the background and like just truly being able to hit the ground running and create so much value so quickly for the company. I would hate for people to think that it's just somebody simply working hard, right? Because I think a lot of people really work hard. If is there other things that stand out to you in that journey over the past nine years where you had to really start thinking about, you know, as you said, the strategic thinking, the sponsorship, the visibility, those business results. Um, as you think about advice and somebody, you know, they're like, yeah, I have all the experience. I could really step into something and make a big impact. What else was it about that journey that stands out that you really had to apply to make sure that people also realized the value where you were creating?

SPEAKER_01 5:04

Well, one, it was a leap for me to even come to Cenapta. And that was uh, I was seven months pregnant, and so I was not looking to make a change with my career, knowing that you know I was having some some life changes. And when the opportunity came about, I had I really struggled with like the pros and cons of do I stay with what I had, which was fine and great and could have also had a trajectory, or do I take this opportunity? And I think, I mean, looking back, I am I'm so glad I took the opportunity. I looking back, I'm like, how did I even struggle with that? But it was, it was at the time a really big decision. And so one, just when those opportunities present themselves, don't be afraid to jump. And I look back now and I'm like, oh my gosh, I'm so glad I did. And I can't even imagine if I didn't spend the last nine years here, even though it was a very chaotic time personally.

SPEAKER_00 5:56

I mean, I can't even imagine, true, like taking on a new role, making that big jump at seven months pregnant. And to your point, I mean, that adds so much more gravity to the situation, right? Because you're there for a couple months, two months, and then leave, right? And then I took four months off and then I came back. And then come back and still not lose traction and still be able to build that growth. And uh or maybe, I mean, I guess tell me, tell me about coming back. Was there a, you know, what would you have told your younger self at that at that point in time and coming back into role after four months and post-starting?

SPEAKER_01 6:33

I think part of it was again, I I worked for someone that I had worked for before. And so we knew each other really well. There's a high level of trust, and so there was, you know, it wasn't it wasn't as much of a risk to kind of bring me on, knowing that my work style and kind of what I could contribute. I was able to hit the ground running pretty fast. So I think, you know, in the two months I was there, I was able to put some things in place and contribute that even when I came back, you know, things were moving and and there were things in place. And then I and then I kept going from there. So there's some definitely some uncertainty, but I think it was really important to get in and make a really strong start knowing that I was going to be out right after that.

SPEAKER_00 7:16

As we move through here, we're gonna talk more about Synopta overall and and some of the in the plant-based category and the comance-based and private label. There's so much happening there. Um, we're gonna get into that in just a second, along with more of that motherhood journey, because I don't want us to skim past like there's the uh the amount of things to balance of rising as a leader, young children, growing a business. There's so much there to still unpack. And but I don't, I don't want to hit, I don't want to miss this hot moment to talk about as you expanded in your leadership and you expanded through this, you're now leading through a significant next chapter for Synopta. That I don't think many people fully appreciate that you guys just closed um an acquisition. Refresco bought Synopta. Before we jump into some of these other pieces, how has that stretched you as a leader given it's very timely? It just in the last 30 days, I think it closed, right? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 8:10

I've been at companies before where we've made acquisitions and I've worked on them in different capacities. So when I was at General Mills, we acquired the Annies brand and I was in a role that they said, what do you, you know, we need to roll out Annies and baking. What are you gonna do? So it was, and then you know, you're working with the Annies team. So that was one experience. When I was at Flagstone Foods slash treehouse, we merged with Raoul Corp and had to integrate with a similar we we ran a nuts and trail mix private label business. We had to integrate with a similar business who had previously been our competitors. That was an experience too. So this is just a different side of it. And it's been just from a an educational leadership, professional development perspective, so fascinating and wonderful to be part of, to be part of, you know, a diligence team and see kind of how these deals get done and progress has been just a great experience for me professionally. But then obviously, any deal comes with a significant amount of change. And so I think that's also been a learning is, you know, understanding what the changes are or understanding that there's going to be a lot of ambiguity for me, for the teams, and then trying to figure out how to, you know, execute, stay focused on our roles and work with a team on that. And it we're we're very much in it right now. I mean, it's been two weeks since we closed, so I I don't have all the answers yet.

SPEAKER_00 9:36

Yeah, I think that's I think that's really fair. The it is super fresh off the press. Is there, you know, as you prepared for some of that communication out, I'm I'm curious if there's you know, it's still being two weeks, and I actually think it's really timely to be able to kind of give give advice based on it being so fresh in your head. But for other leaders that might be thinking, how do I keep my team engaged, focused, connected to the bigger picture during this period, during periods of change like this? Is there something like, man, this went really well or but go ahead.

SPEAKER_01 10:12

I'm just trying to be as transparent as possible with my team. I don't know all that much, but I'm trying to share them what I know, whether it impacts them directly or not, just so they understand what's going on, you know, bigger picture and in the background, because I think some of the uncertainty and anxiety is like, I don't, I haven't heard anything, I don't know what's going on. And so just letting them know like here's here's the stuff that I'm involved with, here's meetings that are taking place, just so you know. And it's not um, you know, it's not anything super exciting, but it's just here, just so you know, here's what's going on. Hopefully that's helping just to um let them feel like, hey, yeah, you know what's happening. Um, and then um our jobs are really to keep our our business on track and continue to work with our customers, continue to provide excellent service, continue to provide quality products. And so that's what we need to do every single day. And so then we just re have to, you know, continue to focus our our conversation and our work on on those things.

SPEAKER_00 11:20

Yeah. I think that's really smart. I think having that level of authenticity and transparency as a leader for your team in many of these cases, right? Yeah, there's not a lot of information that, you know, that you wouldn't that you know or that you can share, right? That um, but that simple just sharing what you can and what you do know, and that this is happening, you know, what is happening through that process and trying to reduce some of that anxiety along the way, I think can play a really big role than just silence, right? I think silence truly creates way, way more unnecessary anxiety for teams um than just feeling like they have that connection point to the leader, right? Of hey, I'm going through this with you and we're all we're all gonna learn and and do it together.

SPEAKER_01 12:04

But yeah, and truly we are. Yeah, truly we are going through it together and and learning at the same time.

SPEAKER_00 12:11

You brought up a a great point though, and I think it's a great transitional moment to talk about at the end of the day, even through acquisition, you still have to deliver and grow and do business and show up daily. And what I really love about Synopta, and I, you know, I many, many people know about Synopta, but I'd say there's there's also a great deal of people that don't know about Synopta and how you're like the best kept secret in the industry, in my eyes, um, which my job here, I'm hoping that it's no longer the best kept secret, right? We want everybody to know about Synopta. Um, but it's you sit at such an interesting point right now in this in a place where the where the industry is at growth, innovation, commercialization, there is a spotlight on private label and contract manufacturing. Your leadership is it's in the intersection of all of this. And you know, I think we could talk about what people maybe underestimate about what it takes to bring this level of innovation to the market throughout the year and deliver on that. Um, maybe, I mean, let's actually just start there because it's a hot moment in the industry right now. And how Sinopta is rising to that occasion, I'm just curious to get your take on it, given that you guys have the capabilities to really deliver in a moment of growth for the industry in this space.

SPEAKER_01 13:32

Yeah, it is an exciting time to be in this industry. I I love where we sit in it. So for those who don't know, we run low acid aseptic beverages and better for you fruit-based snacks. We also do our own extraction of for plant-based milks. And so we can make a lot of different things, but we see ourselves as a solution provider for our customers. We have multiple plants, so we can create redundant supply chains. We have multiple different packaging sizes and case configurations. We can run a lot of different products. In fact, for many customers, we run many more than one product line. We're in multiple categories. And what I love about it is that it feels like it's an enabler for our entire food supply chain to provide tons of products that are really important for families, for cooking, for snacking, for on the go, for all different usage occasions, but making them widely available across the country at, you know, at very fair prices, and especially in a time where we continue to see inflation, private label and having options that are lower cost but still very high quality is very, very important. As are consumers who want to treat themselves when they go and get a coffee at their favorite coffee shop or go to a quick serve restaurant, as are consumers that are buying the brands that they know and trust and the innovation that they bring and being able to get the same thing that they want consistently, you know, anywhere they are. I mean, that's where we really thrive at the intersection of all of those things. And because we're operators, we run the manufacturing equipment and we have a full RD team, we've got an innovation center. So we can help brands, private labels, any of our customers try to figure out what's the right product, how do we optimize it for the usage occasion, for the consumer, for the ingredient or nutritional profile they want, and then help them launch it as quickly as we can move. So it's a really fun spot to be in. We we get to be part of a lot of different things.

SPEAKER_00 15:38

You really do. And I've I've gotten to know Sunopta for several years and just been so impressed at, you know, not just you representing your own brands, but in this other space and helping products and helping customers be able to commercialize and how fast you can do that. It is really, really impressive and being that full solution provider. As we look at the industry, I'm curious to know what trends are you paying the most attention to right now across food and beverage?

SPEAKER_01 16:05

Yeah, I mean, there's there's so much. One is we're looking at GLP1s and you know, how is that going to change the the foods and beverages that that people eat, the quantities and the nutritional makeup and the ingredients? You know, I think there's a lot of people looking at sugar and how much sugar should we be having, and what are the sources of sugar and and all of that, and how does that play? Protein, which has been around for for a while, but it just feels like everything is protein, even more so. And how are people getting their protein? And what does it make sense to put protein in? And what are the sources of protein and how do we get more of it? And and so we're looking at all of those different things. Oh, sustainability, of course, sustainability of the packaging of the products, how things are harvested, where they come from, what chemicals are used or not used on crops. I mean, all of those things, you know, we're trying to adapt our manufacturing, our products, our sourcing to be in line with, you know, where consumers are moving.

SPEAKER_00 17:05

Yeah, which to that point is the consumers are moving so fast. Like I say, this is the first time in my ex in my 20 years that I think I feel like consumers are moving faster than the industry itself. Like what they need, what they want, what they're desiring. Like it takes time to bring innovation to the market, right? And to meet consumers where they're at in that balanced approach of supply chain. And right, you you turn on the faucet of like, I want protein and everything, but there's massive back-end supply chain um repercussions to that to be out to be able to pivot and deliver on it. You know, as you look at how quick consumers are changing, where do you think companies are gonna thrive or fail in in rising to the occasion?

SPEAKER_01 17:52

I mean, you said it supply chain. That's like how fast can you pivot your supply chain and can you make it affordable? And that's what's that's what's really hard. We do a lot of work with commodities. We have a large plant-based business. We are buying from farmers. And when you're growing something like oats, you have a one growing season. It happens once a year for North America. And we don't know what the crop is going to be like every year. There were years where there was severe drought and there were fewer acres planted, and there were just fewer oats available, and the price skyracketed. And so you you don't know if the consumers are moving so fast, but they, you know, something becomes really big, but the the planting window is missed, like you might not have a supply of that thing for another year. So I think that's like figuring out the supply chains and having the foresight of like, what are we going to need? And and then also try and figuring out how to be flexible is going to be really important. We've seen supply chains obviously become so much more global because people want flexibility to source year-round from different geographies to make sure if this one gets hit with a weather event or a geopolitical thing, then we can still get what we need. But that does come with a cost. And so to be able to with fuel rising every single day, that costs. So I do think the supply chain is difficult. And then um, and then certainly manufacturing and scale up, which is where I think we come in as a co-packer, is you don't have to wait 24 months to buy, you know, install your own line that you may or may not be able to fill. Obviously, the the shared manufacturing assets will really help people scale up faster because they're not putting, you know, waiting to put steel on the ground or build their own plants and also take some of the risk out of it. So I I think it's a great model, and I do see it being more utilized as we try to innovate faster and faster.

SPEAKER_00 19:47

Yeah, I totally agree. For those brands wanting to move fast, I mean there's so much. Gosh, I've been listening and reading to several different articles, even most recently, um, some of the case studies around Poppy and like the early advice they got, which was like, do not invest in your own manufacturing assets right now. Like invest in the marketing of it, you know, what I there's, you know, I would also argue the capacity is also tight in the command space. Um, and there's only so much. But, you know, for those brands that are wanting to build and grow really fast, you know, understanding how you're serving your customer and let let somebody else, you know, who's operationally excellent at the supply chain and the manufacturing side of it help you scale from that angle. I think it strategically it makes a lot of sense for a lot of brands. You know, you brought up a really good point though, because you are so heavy and plant-based. And with that category maturing, I don't know, is it maturing? Maybe let's ask that question first. Um, do you see the category overall maturing and plant-based, or do you still think it's at a rise?

SPEAKER_01 20:51

Um, I do think it's maturing. I mean, it had a pretty meteoric rise a few years ago. And we we specifically work on plant-based milks, plant-based creamers, and plant-based ingredients. And we still see people using these products every day at home and away from home. I mean, in coffee shops, that's where you see uh not only in coffee, but non-coffee drinks also, um, coconut milk in particular, we've seen a ton of summer drinks. And even in retail, we see the trends still supporting a lot of these plant-based beverages as people, you know, in different households have different needs between, you know, being vegan and not wanting to use dairy or being lactose intolerant, or just I like the taste of oat milk better in certain things. And so we see households, you know, buying lots of different types of products to meet different usage occasions and the needs of different people in their household. So we're we still see a ton of opportunity and strength in this category, just in a lot of different areas. It's not necessarily just in, you know, a milk that you buy from the grocery store.

SPEAKER_00 22:00

Yeah. I think that's if anything, over the past couple of years in the rise of plant-based, you know, I see a different story, for instance, in some of the meat categories. But I think we're right in the beverage categories, the rise of it has almost created a more balanced ecosystem of like what's available. Like consumers just don't have the availability to some of these products. And I think now that we have the choices and availability on the store shelves, that they're able to really lean in and we're gonna see that stability across plant-based day for a while. And as they as I think about what do you want to serve in your daily needs or recipes or taste preferences. But you just mentioned coconut milk, and I'm like, hmm, summertime, summertime. We're both here in Minnesota, summertime in Minnesota like bring forward all the all the summer beverages with coconut milk. All the summer beverages, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 22:50

We've also seen soy um kind of have a resurgence. Soy is an excellent source of of plant protein. And as we talked about protein before, I think consumers are realizing, oh yeah, I can get my my protein from soy milk. Obviously, oat milk has been a favorite for a long time. Just the the taste and how it blends with coffee is really good. So there's a lot of specific usage occasions that make a ton of sense for for plant-based milks.

SPEAKER_00 23:13

Yeah. I do agree with you from the soy aspect. It's I think soy is having a resurgence, especially in this protein protein phase that we're in and and how how tight um specifically the dairy market's becoming. And then like soy is just a very neutral protein. Like the taste profile is not necessarily as strong as maybe you get from a pea, for instance. And so I do see it being able to play easier in some applications than others. My own personal perspective. I disagree with what you do. What did you say? You have a food science background too. So oh yeah, I could nerd out on this all day. Let's um we could uh man, yeah. I if you want to get me going on taste profiles of different proteins, we could we could spend the rest of the show there, but we won't. Um before we close out on, like, we're gonna move forward into just some of your own personal leadership, but from a business standpoint, right? You guys have a lot going on in different categories. Like, is there any how do you think about balancing some of these priorities, customer needs, your own brand? Like as a leader, especially going through acquisition, how do you think about prioritization right now and manage that day-to-day?

SPEAKER_01 24:28

It's a really good question. Um, we do, we we say we're go-to-market agnostics. So we are not all private label or all branded or all coman or all food service. We're a mix of those things. And I think the mix is actually really important because each kind of segment and each category brings with it, you know, its own sort of benefits to the whole portfolio. So, for example, we we make a lot of broth. Broth is a very seasonal business. I would not want to have a portfolio of only broth because um, you know, you'd have this peak and in November, December, and then you would have kind of lows the rest of the year. So that's how we think about it. We try to think about it as being very balanced. And we do try to work with customers when, you know, especially when there's specific projects that we feel like we can do really well at and that we're the right manufacturer for. We try to prioritize those projects with our customers and with a very partnered approach versus, oh, we're gonna go out and do and do this thing that nobody's asking for.

SPEAKER_00 25:32

Yeah. Yeah. I think that makes a lot of sense and keeps your portfolio very diversified, but also really, really strong in the changing climate. And to your point, yeah, trying to be new to the world is something, right? You're you're really responding to the market and being the solution to where your customers are wanting to go right now, which keeps you front and center.

SPEAKER_01 25:50

Yeah, but I do think prioritization is always a challenge for every business because there's always you know more to do than you have people to do or hours in the day. And so I it's constant, right? It's not like you you prioritize and then you don't talk about it. Like we're constantly talking about, you know, trade-offs and projects and you know, initiatives. So it's just it's just constant.

SPEAKER_00 26:12

Yeah. And I think that's well, even in the previous conversation, in our previous episode with Jennifer Jorgensen, we were talking about this of how to how to keep how to keep people on track, right? And being making sure that vision and that like that vision is really clear from the top. And I'm I'm guessing you're leaning really heavy into that, especially coming through the acquisition and making sure everybody is heading in one direction together, all rowing in the same path.

SPEAKER_01 26:38

Oh, yeah. And from the top, um, we've had the same set of sort of strategic priorities since for this year, since mid-last year, and it hasn't changed with the acquisition, and it hasn't changed when the calendar turned over, and it hasn't changed, you know, every quarter. And I think having that really consistent has been helpful. Sometimes the execution will change, but those initiatives are still, or those strategic priorities are still what we're driving towards as an organization.

SPEAKER_00 27:04

Yeah, I love that. Well, as we as we talk about some of your own leadership, we're gonna, this is a really hot topic for so many right now. And and just being a woman, being visible leadership. One thing we talk about within FIF a lot is visibility. And when we got the state of women in the industry data back, we are seeing that recognition and visibility is being identified as the top barrier for advancement for women in the industry. And I want to talk a little bit about this with you for the women who are doing a lot of the business building behind the scenes. And as your own leadership platform has continued to grow, what advice would you give to women who are ready to step into that next level, but maybe not see themselves there yet?

SPEAKER_01 27:52

You have to be doing the work of the next level in your current role because you you have to show people that you can you can do it. And I also think it gives you personally confidence that you can do it because you're already operating at that level. Um, and so I think that's really important is not just to stay, oh, this is my very narrow role. This is my very narrow job, is to see those opportunities and sort of sometimes it will be stepping outside of your comfort zone in your in your current role, but those are the things that prove to yourself and and showcase to others that you know you're you're ready for the next level. It gives you visibility and puts you in a position to be considered when those opportunities open up.

SPEAKER_00 28:30

Yeah. There's so sorry, there's so much there. I'm like gathering my thoughts around. Um, there's two different questions I actually have around um readiness, but also, you know, also risks. Like as women are are thinking about, you know, doing wanting to make a bigger impact, wanting to move outside of their job scope, right? To be able to take on additional responsibilities, give that, have that freedom to take more risks. And I don't necessarily see it for, you know, I think there's tons of opportunity to move from, you know, to do additional impact work from that middle management into director or director into VP, right? People are look at that level, you're looking for uh people are looking for initiative and for people to rise and step into that. But for maybe those individuals who are emerging professionals, right? I do think those first five years of work, where I think we have a lot of young leaders who want to, you know, they're hungry for the opportunity. And those in those first five years, it's really, you know, do your job, prove that you can do it. You know, it's very much I'm gonna tell you what to do versus like we want you to really step in with initiative and and take some risks. And I'm curious from uh more of those emerging professionals, what advice do you have for them as they enter the food and beverage industry and the opportunities to really advance their careers in this space?

SPEAKER_01 29:54

I think there's there's just so many opportunities to do things in this industry. You could work for a a supplier, an ingredient company, a manufacturer, a branded business. I mean, there's so many different facets of this industry. And so one is just find the right one. I know there are a lot of people that actually move between companies, between products, between functions, even. Like you might start out in sales and then realize that actually you really like logistics. Or, you know, it doesn't. I I think those first few years are an opportunity for you to try things. There's nothing to lose by trying different things and trying to get different experiences before you really zone in on kind of, you know, where you want to be. And it it only helps. It really only helps to have that cross-functional or cross-industry insight because it's really hard to work with people at a high level who have only done one thing and don't understand how you know different parts of the industry work. So I think that's really, really valuable experience to take those first few years and just try a lot of different things as much as you can.

SPEAKER_00 31:01

Yeah, I think that's really smart. How interconnect. I mean, our entire food value chain is so much more interconnected than anybody knows. But to your point, yeah, there's the man, even those trainee programs that if you can get into something that wants you to rotate every single year, I think there's so much hard.

SPEAKER_01 31:19

It's not easy. Like it's definitely hard. But I will say that's one thing I I learned when I was at General Mills is they did rotate us every year as an incoming marketer. And you had to very quickly figure out how to learn a new business, learn a new category, work with a new team. Um, and the roles were different business situations. You might be on a small struggling brand one day, and then the next year you'd be on an innovation desk or a customer-focused desk. And having all of those experiences is incredibly valuable. I still look back on them today and draw from those experiences.

SPEAKER_00 31:51

Yeah. I I couldn't agree more. And I think it's also advice to organizations who are looking to also recruit a lot of Gen Z coming out, like coming in and how do we how do we think? How are we supporting more of the emerging talent and the needs and desires, but also what's going to prepare those leaders for the future bench that we're going to need in this industry, right? Um and getting as much diverse supply chain business experience as possible. I I think there's going to be a lot of need in that. So for those organizations listening, it's a it's a good uh a good opportunity to think about what does uh what do some of those incoming programs look like. For me, I had I had really strong interlike, I was able to step into six-month internships while still in school, which was invaluable, right? I'm like, how do I how do I get into the industry and like focus and what I was always told in my first couple of jobs, you have to niche down, you have to niche down, you have to choose that one subject of expertise. I'm like, why? Why why can't why can't you learn as much like doing also?

SPEAKER_01 32:57

And so you're you can take a course on anything, but really you're gonna learn the most and it's gonna stick with you if you're if you're doing.

SPEAKER_00 33:04

Exactly. I couldn't agree more. One one additional question in the space, you know, were there moments as you've moved through your career, you've had seats at lots of different tables, right? I'm curious for that vulnerable vulnerability moment for our audience. Like, is there a situation in which you you had to like tell yourself, like, I'm gonna claim this seat before you really felt ready?

SPEAKER_01 33:25

I do think just the the moving to Cynopta, which we talked about before, I know, but that to me, that was that was my leap of okay, I'm a senior manager. I in my previous company, I was, you know, doing well, and it was it was a good company and a good role. And then sort of figuring out, okay, I've got to like I have this opportunity to move and and level up and and take on a new challenge. I mean, that was that was a very big decision. And I definitely made a lot of pro and cons lists and spreadsheets and things and consulted with a lot of people. And um, you know, that was the that was my like, okay, I'm gonna make the leap moment.

SPEAKER_00 34:08

Yeah, no, makes that makes a lot of sense. And it was a big leap given everything that you have going on. And what we didn't touch on, we touched on a little bit earlier, but being a working mom, you know, I'm curious, how do you define success today versus maybe earlier in your career? Does it look different or are those metrics still similar?

SPEAKER_01 34:26

Um, I do think, well, I think my day-to-day looks different. Like I, you know, earlier in my career, I would, I think I just had more consistent work hours. Now it's it's all the time. Like it's it's just so blended. And that's what works for me. It doesn't work for everybody, but I'm really thankful that I have the opportunity to, you know, I get up early and I work first thing in the morning. Then I get my kid on the bus, then I come back to work, then I go into the office. Then I, you know, and then like some sometimes you work on weekends or after your kids go to bed. That's just what it is. But I also when I'm with my kids, I try to take a break and be present at their baseball, soccer, bath, all the sports, all the sports things. And, you know, if I'm doing a work trip, I will FaceTime them every night to make sure I check in and say hi. My husband's obviously a very capable parent and has been wonderful support. Um, and I don't think you could it would be very difficult if I didn't have a partner who is also very capable and supportive.

SPEAKER_00 35:25

Yeah, I think that's I think that's really important. But the the blended piece, I I think that is a new norm. And I think as we as we progress forward, you know, is it ever really balance or integration and just blend? Right.

SPEAKER_01 35:44

I don't know. There's some I think I've found my own personal balance and it's taken trial and error on on how to do it, and then also your your schedule changes. Your yeah your personal life schedule changes, your work life schedule changes, and then you have to you're constantly readjusting and re-evaluating, and that's just that's just what it is.

SPEAKER_00 36:03

And you have these little humans that also change every single day, too, and and their needs and and their schedules also evolve.

SPEAKER_01 36:11

Um, so I will say it's been my kids are now um almost 12 and almost nine, and it does get easier because they become more self-sufficient. Like my 12-year-old started in middle school, and he gets up, gets dressed, gets himself breakfast, gets himself out the door to the bus on his own every day. And it's amazing. It's amazing to watch. Um it also, you know, helps your logistic life as a parent.

SPEAKER_00 36:38

Yeah, absolutely. Man, we're I'm looking forward to those days. Those um, yeah. I am, I am, but not, right? Like every season is a special season and they all go very fast. But before we close out, I actually want to do something a bit more fun so our listeners can get to know you, but also I think sharing as working women some of our hacks is actually really, really helpful. Um, rapid fire. What's your busy mom on the go hack?

SPEAKER_01 37:02

I've got a whiteboard calendar in my fridge, all the activities color-coded. I know I should probably get a skylight calendar. I know that's the thing. I love the whiteboard, and everyone can see it and like see what we have going on, and it's great.

SPEAKER_00 37:14

I'm I'm all for going back to analog. Let me write it out. Let me see the color-coded bits and pieces. Everybody has a color. I love that. What's one thing that helps you reset after a demanding week?

SPEAKER_01 37:24

We do a lot of family movie nights on Friday nights with you know, pizza and popcorn, and we'll pick a movie, and it's it's like the greatest unwind at the end of the week.

SPEAKER_00 37:34

I love it. What's one product app routine that you swear by? I have gotten very into the Peloton.

SPEAKER_01 37:42

Um, I don't do the bike or the tread, I just do like some of the other classes.

SPEAKER_00 37:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 37:47

And some friends got me into it, and I don't want to be one of those annoying people that talks about it, you know, your favorite instructors all the time. But I do really, I do really love it, and it keeps me on task with making sure I'm fitting some of these movement and fitness things in regularly. It's great. It is actually a really great app.

SPEAKER_00 38:05

I think it's like less motivation. Like and it's super affordable. I feel like for the various exercises on your phone, like on the go, it's it's super affordable every month. But one thing, sorry, side note, Peloton and what they've done is when they were experiencing like the decline in their business, they leaned into their instructors and the community that they were building to like make people obsessed with those exactly what you mentioned. Like people were talking about their instructors, that was like their entire business strategy to overcome their decline in product sales, um, was to lean into like that influencer instructor part of their business. Another case, I told you, I've been reading a lot of case studies recently. It's a whole uh mini MBA in my uh in my free time. Um okay, one last question. What's one thing people would be surprised to learn about you outside of work?

SPEAKER_01 38:55

Oh, um, I don't know if they'd be surprised, but I'm a very competitive board gamer and Scrabble player, and I just picked up Mahjong, as have all the people. So I'm I will, you know, take on take on challenges there. But I don't think anyone would be surprised, but it's that's fun in my spare time.

SPEAKER_00 39:14

Did you know they were like launching a Wordle TV show with Vincent?

SPEAKER_01 39:17

I didn't see that. I don't totally understand how it's gonna work. I do the Wordle every day. Um, my 12-year-old does it too now, which was fun. So now we can kind of compare scores. Um so yeah, I'll probably give it a watch. We'll see.

SPEAKER_00 39:31

I I'm just the logistics of it for that pure reason. I'm like, how is this gonna work? And I'll tune in as well. Um, it's it's coming. Well, Lauren, this has been such a great conversation. We have covered so much, right? Leadership, plant, like commercialization, synopta acquisition, innovation, like all of it. I'm I'm super uh just honored to to have had this conversation with you today and and all your advice to our audience. It it truly means a lot to be able to hear your story, your perspective, and and what you're seeing in the market. So thank you so much for being here. Thank you so much for inviting me.

SPEAKER_01 40:05

This is a great conversation, and your questions were so thoughtful. Um, it was great speaking with you today.

SPEAKER_00 40:11

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