6 years ago I answered a call from Carly Sahagian regarding a credit role with #pnwrailcars. I knew very little about railcars other than nostalgic memories of spending nights at my grandparents' house near Sandy, Oregon and listening to the sound of railcars passing in the night along the tracks that bordered their rhododendron farm property.
I wasn't thriving in my position at a regional bank at the time, the primary reason being autocratic leadership, stale processes and systems and an entrenched culture of weary uninspired people with frankly, the daily doldrums.
I met with the leadership at PNW (formerly MUL Railcars), which included Japanese ex-pats. I immediately felt a difference. The feeling I had was like walking through a doorway from a wet, cold winter, into a burgeoning springtime, with tulips lining the path to the street, their buds open to sunlight.
I took a chance, and I took the job. Since then, we have tripled in size, but we have not lost the spring-like optimism as a company that I felt in my first interview. We have only added people to our team who bring energy, kindness, camaraderie and a collaborative spirit to our business. People who care less about titles and more about outcomes. People who care if your child is sick, if you picked up a new fun hobby, what book you last read and whether your spirit needs a boost. We work hard at PNW and it's not always easy, but the rewards are too many to list here. We laugh a lot, we dole out compliments to each other, we accept each other's many quirks, we challenge the status quo, and we make big things happen -- together.
The doldrums are definitely not a thing here, but joy, inspiration, and growth definitely are. This is what working at a good company in a role that resonates for yourself, looks like. Here's to six years PNW Railcars - thank you!
Assistant Manager, Public Relations
3moBig thanks to Marcelo Brutti for the awesome interview. It was great hearing all about your journey to becoming the CEO of HCA and the skills that led you there. As a proud Latina, it was an extremely inspiring conversation! Thank you Yvette Cornejo for being a great co-host! 💙