The STEP Ahead Awards are a nationwide honor presented by The Manufacturing Institute, the workforce development and education partner of The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), that recognizes outstanding contributions by women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Production (STEP) careers. Each year, 130 women are recognized, 100 STEP Ahead Honorees and 30 Emerging Leaders under age 30).
ABB has participated in the award nomination process since 2016 as a way to recognize women at ABB for their accomplishments at work and in their community. This year, we had our largest group of ABB nominees ever. In fact, we had so many that a panel of HR Business partners and managers, including a former STEP Award recipient, selected our eventual nominees to conform to the limited number of nominations allowed from one company.
Nominations
| Name | Title | ABB Business | Nomination Category |
| Maria Dropps | Production Supervisor | Electrification | STEP Ahead Emerging Leader |
| Victoria Davenport | Supply Chain Manager | Motion | STEP Ahead Emerging Leader |
| Abagail Blodgett | Production Engineer | Robotics | STEP Ahead Emerging Leader |
| Vivien Pinto | IS Domain Delivery Manager | Information Systems | STEP Ahead Honoree |
| Taydi Delgado | HBU Controller | Industrial Processes | STEP Ahead Honoree |
| Tracy Long | Vice President - Communications | Motion | STEP Ahead Honoree |
| Djana Taylor | Supply Chain Manager | Motion | STEP Ahead Honoree |
| Kristina Worgan | Director, Planning & Fulfillment | Motion | STEP Ahead Honoree |
| Andrea Czapiewski | Director, Spare Parts & Rebuild | Robotics | STEP Ahead Honoree |
“I wish we could have submitted everyone, but I’m excited about the ones we did,” says Jason Green, Country HR Manager for the U.S. “They are very deserving of this recognition and we should all be proud of their work, both inside and outside of ABB.”
Nominees will compete with over 1,000 women in manufacturing to be selected as a 2021 STEP Ahead recipient.
In addition, those selected by the Manufacturing Institute as 2021 STEP Ahead Award recipients will be invited to Washington DC for a leadership development conference and evening awards gala as part of their selection as an 2021 award recipient. The event was virtual this year, so we hope they get to have the event in person in 2021.
Award recipients will be notified in early January and the winners will be announced publicly closer to the 2021 awards gala date.
