Can’t-miss Sessions at NWiR Day 2022!

By Evelyn Witterholt, RCS Reporter. 

With speeches, seminars and live demos, one with our very own RCS President and COO, NWiR Day 2022 is set to be a great day for women in the roofing industry. 

The fifth annual National Women in Roofing (NWiR) Day will be held in New Orleans, Louisiana on January 30, just before the International Roofing Expo (IRE). The one-day conference is open to women professionals in the roofing industry who want to connect with other women in the industry. If you haven’t registered for the event yet, you can do so here. 

NWiR Day is a top-notch conference for women who work in the roofing industry. Here, they can meet up with other women roofing professionals and together they can learn about business strategies and success secrets. With speeches, live demos and seminars on the schedule for the day, there is no shortage of activities for attendees! 

The Power of Networking session 

One highlight of the day will be a special session on networking from RoofersCoffeeShop® President  Heidi J. Ellsworth and COO Karen L. Edwards. The two are set to discuss the power of networking, how to build a network and how to use that network positively for career success. This hour-long session is set to take place at 2:30 p.m. Save it to your schedule here! 

More NWiR Day highlights and sessions to look forward to: 

• Two DISC (Dominance, Influence, Steadiness and Consciousness) sessions – Learn how to build a better team with the DISC behavior model, presented by Tremco’s Executive Vice President Mardee Billingsley and Career Matrix Group’s Career & Executive Performance Coach Susan Barnes. Session 1 will be held at 10:45 a.m. and Session 2 will be held at 1:15 p.m. 

• Live demo of proper flashing systems - This demonstration of the components of a proper flashing system, required tools and equipment, installation methods and more will be presented by Johns Manville. 

• RESPECT! Building Your Power to Influence Roofing Culture - A session on how to create allies and an inclusive environment for your employees. Beacon Building Product’s Executive Vice President and General Counsel Christine Reddy, Assistant General Counsel Paula Sumberg and Vice President Jennifer Lewis are all set to speak at this session. 

• Building Council Membership - SRS Distribution Inc.’s Regional Operations Controller Christine Mockenhaupt will discuss four specific methods to building a NWIR council for attendees who either currently lead a council or want to start one. 

• Fighting the Mental Health and Suicide Epidemic in Construction - Sue Drummond, customer success manager from Harness, will give a presentation on the mental health and suicide epidemic in the construction industry. She will present the reasons why the issue is so prevalent and how to combat it from an employee and employer’s perspective. 

• Live demo of Titan XT premium shingles - Join TAMKO’s sales representative and key account manager, Crystal Stone, as she demonstrates their new premium asphalt shingle. She will be joined by Lorena Garcia Cucalon, a research scientist for TAMKO, who will discuss the product, its development and how to market it. There will be two demonstrations held throughout the day for this product! 

• A Few Good Guys Become Allies: How Women Can Identify Male Allies and Partner to Impact Change - In this session, many members of the roofing industry will speak on how men and women can partner together and implement inclusion strategies to create change in the industry. Speakers include: Houston Young from Owens Corning, Percy Freeman and Sonya Wells from SRS Distribution Inc., Todd Nathan from Johns Manville, Todd Skaggs from Beacon Building Products and Pete Vollmar from GAF. 

• The Journey to Leading Courageous Conversations - This breakout discussion is designed to help attendees enhance their capabilities to embrace diversity and build an appreciative culture in their workplace and beyond. Join Owens Corning’s Inclusion and Diversity Lead Christie Taylor and Community Outreach Leader Houston Young for this insightful discussion. 

• 45 Marketing Tips in 45 Minutes - Join four marketing gurus for this fast-paced session as they share tips from their private marketing playbooks. Speakers include: Liz Garza from My Roofing Crew, Anna Anderson from Art Unlimited, Mara Chapin from OMG Roofing Products and Chantalle Hepburn from Tremco. 

• Demo of REAL Roofing - This demo will highlight REAL Roofing, an interactive multi-media education program to bring Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) education to the roofing industry. The program will be available at a low cost to the entire industry. NWiR’s Executive Director Ellen Thorp, M.A., CAE, SRS Distribution Inc.’s Operation Manager Jess Cress and Chinook Roofing’s Director of Steep-Slope Operations Rae July will lead this demonstration! 

• Technolution – 7 Resolutions for Making Better Technology Solutions for Your Company - Join Lee Lipniskis, associate consultant for Cotney Attorneys & Consultants, as she discusses how to make better decisions on technology solutions for your company. This discussion is great for those who struggle with deciding which software will best increase their organization’s profitability and efficiency. 

View the full schedule for NWiR Day 2022 here!

Learn more about NWiR in their RoofersCoffeeShop® Directory or visit www.nationalwomeninroofing.org.