Meet Our Fellows Blog Series: Berit Reisenauer Guidotti
I learned about enFocus during the final semester of my Master of Theological Studies program at the University of Notre Dame, where I studied technology ethics. My background is in consulting, business operations, and change management; with my interests and a few years of work experience under my belt, I was perhaps a unique candidate for the enFocus Fellowship. I had also enjoyed living in South Bend for two years and was looking for job opportunities that would allow me to give back to the community. I could tell that enFocus offered more than a job; enFocus is committed to making a positive difference in the South Bend-Elkhart region, and I knew that my skills and background would bring a valuable perspective to their team.
I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, and aerospace manufacturing was the bread and butter of my hometown. I understand that manufacturing jobs can help ensure that communities are vibrant and life-giving places to live and work. Unlike some positions in the digitizing workforce, manufacturing positions often require both technical and manual skill. Many manufacturers continue to offer positions that build valuable, long-term skillsets for workers. And well-paid jobs like these allow workers to raise healthier families and support one another through more resilient neighborhoods and community organizations. However, the manufacturing landscape is changing rapidly and the consolidation of manufacturing capabilities through mergers and acquisitions, large-scale automation trends, and deindustrialization present new challenges particularly for small- and medium-sized manufacturers.
Today, I work on sponsored projects as a part of the Industry Innovation team at enFocus. As partners in the Labs for Industry Futures and Transportation (LIFT) Network, enFocus understands the opportunity for local manufacturers to become more resilient through digital advancement and innovation. enFocus is committed to attracting technical talent that allows us to provide businesses with the necessary competitive edge to continue creating valuable jobs for people in our community.
Many manufacturers in the region are longstanding family-owned businesses that offer well-paid jobs. But family-owned businesses (surprisingly!) face challenges with succession planning, and even small towns in Northern Indiana are influenced by macroeconomic forces, including deindustrialization. To that end, I am also grateful to enFocus for the opportunity, apart from my sponsored projects, to have dedicated time to develop my personal passion, a social impact initiative that encourages employee ownership as a valuable business model. Alongside members of the enFocus Fellow team and local economic development organizations, I am encouraging members of our community to consider employee ownership as a viable succession planning alternative. Business owners looking to retire or move on from their businesses ought to consider facilitating an employee buyout, earning the full and fair value of their company through the sale while ensuring that their business continues to have a long-term positive impact in our community. As a business model, employee ownership builds community wealth and helps ensure the long-term resiliency of our manufacturing landscape.
enFocus, through their Fellowship program, is uniquely positioned to allow me to work closely alongside local manufacturers while advocating for positive change for our community. For this reason, I am especially grateful to be a Fellow.