March 28, 2025 Raised by Women Redefining Normal

Volume 28 | Issue 1

Olivia Morales: A manufacturing landscape that is future proof.

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International Women’s Day is, in many ways, just another day. It’s not a big holiday that garners a lot of attention, and is likely overlooked. If you’d asked me a month ago what its date was, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you. But I’m a woman! Shouldn’t I be aware of a day that honors me and my rights? Maybe that’s a symptom of why such a day must exist – to force us to look a little more closely at this half of the population.

When I think about International Women’s Day, I think about all the incredible women in my life. This year, I think about my grandmother. Little Jean was born in a small town during a time when women had fewer choices and less independence than today. They did not get to grow up thinking they could be just anything. She wanted to go to university; she did not. I think she had professional ambitions, but pursued them only after fulfilling the requirements of the time: to raise her family, two girls and two boys. Perhaps I have unintentionally reduced her to this story. I wish I could ask her. I have always wondered what life she wanted, and how it compared to the life she had. What did little Jean want to be when she grew up? Did she do it? What got in her way? Here’s what I do know: she lived a big life. At age 50 she became the Executive Director of her city’s Habitat for Humanity Chapter. She was one of the few founding members tasked with developing a local branch of the organization, eventually leading Habitat until she retired. She traveled the world – she had deep relationships – she was an incredible mother, grandmother, friend, leader.

But what did little Jean want? She lived through significant social movements; she performed what many may call the most quintessential roles of the time: homemaker, party hostess, community volunteer. Women are complex. Our desires are often bound by our circumstances. Where is the balance? Our paths are set not by explicit rules, but by expectations and examples – both of the era, and for the individual. I am no exception.

This is an industrial publication, and I would be remiss to stay silent on the topic of being a woman in manufacturing, or being a woman in a male-dominated field. There are certainly interesting things to say on these topics, but what matters more to me is acknowledging the incredible women in my life. The ones I look to for advice and who helped me become the woman I am today.

My work life is in stark contrast to the environment in which I was raised. I grew up in a female-dominated family, then landed in a male-dominated field. The concept of “girl power” was not explicitly emphasized in my home, but it was modeled daily in the ways that my grandmother and mother lived their lives and raised me. My mom made sure I took time to analyze my passions, cultivate my skills, and get out of my comfort zone. She insisted I could be whatever I wanted. I feel lucky to have had examples of strong women all around me, but no one was pointing them out to me as strong women. It was normal. It should be normal. It’s still not normal.

It should be unremarkable to see women leading and succeeding in all the same ways as men. But to get there, we first need to see those examples. Young girls and boys need to see them early. Humans are wired to model themselves after examples they see. Those examples do not need to be trend-setting, social disruptors. Most people are not that. The examples simply need to feel achievable and encourage a practice of challenging perspectives and expectations.

Urging young women to consider a career in manufacturing is even more challenging. Manufacturing careers are less visible and accessible compared to others. Few young people actually know about them, let alone know that they can offer opportunities for women. When was the last time you saw a TV show about manufacturing? There are dozens about doctors, lawyers, and teachers. Storytelling of any kind goes a long way in its ability to influence what we define as normal, or possible. Those stories can have an impact regardless of whether they are personal ones, ones in the media, or even fictional ones.

International Women’s Day celebrates the women’s rights movement, but the day is increasingly commercialized and leveraged by corporations. Movements form at a personal level – sustained by individual connections, stories, and a little serendipity. I owe my ability to embrace the opportunities in front of me to the women who raised me, like my grandma.

My grandma wanted to be an actress. She was smart, creative, klutzy, strong-willed. She went from being a horrible cook to a great one. She never stopped trying new things. She was adventurous. She created community. She was always reading a new book.

Women are complex and deserve a world where they can choose from a vast set of potential paths, or forge their own. Little Jean may have begun her life as a product of her circumstances, but she built a life that was so much more.

Because of everything she was, I am everything I am. I am honored to tell part of her story.

About the Author:
Olivia Morales is a Senior Solutions Architect on the CESMII Smart Manufacturing Technology Team. She works with manufacturers and technology providers on the Smart Manufacturing Innovation Platform by advising on architecture, development and implementation, and by expanding resources for developers. Olivia has focused her career on Software Development for Manufacturing Systems and her knowledge of technology and manufacturing provide the foundation necessary to lead CESMII and its members towards a manufacturing landscape that is future proof, collaborative and rooted in standards. She leads and participates in industry joint working groups with a shared mission to create reusable interoperable manufacturing technology. Previously, Olivia was with Rockwell Automation where she received a patent for her work on an innovative product that delivered an industrial hardened AI directly to the automation control platform.

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