Relatively new to the manufacturing industry, Total Security Solutions Chief Operating Officer Christine Sermak has quickly used her past experience as a teacher, coach, athletic director and principal to enhance interpersonal skills in her workplace, building on its already dynamic, supportive environment. Her ability to infuse her wealth of knowledge and insights into her role for the betterment of the organization has made her the 2024 Manufacturing Talent Champion.

Upon retiring from the education system three years ago, she connected with Total Security Solutions (TSS) CEO Jim Richards via a mutual friend. Although the industry was out of her comfort zone, she realized this role was a natural next step in her career.

“It really was about coaching, teaching, inspiring people, motivating people, collaborating and just that whole-team approach,” Sermak says.

Since she joined the team, TSS has benefited from this teaching and coaching mindset that Sermak brought with her.

“It’s really changed and evolved how we look at people, how we bring people in the organization, how we make sure that those people are set up for success,” Richards says.

Business System Specialist Amanda Arnaudo agrees that Sermak has had a significant impact on the organization.

“Since Christine has been with TSS, she has started to take us back to the basics, making sure that we understand the vision for the company, the foundation of the company, making sure that all new hires are onboarded properly, that we have continuous improvement training for all of our employees,” Arnaudo says. “So really just making sure that everybody is able to row in the same direction and understands where we want to go and how we’re going to get there.”

After beginning work at Fowlerville-based TSS, which engineers, manufactures and designs bulletproof barrier systems, Sermak helped to solidify its “Total Security Solutions University.” TSSU was originally intended to bring Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) principles to life, says Sermak. Her role includes integration of the EOS business model, which focuses on the six core components of any organization: vision, data, process, traction, issues and people.

TSSU soon morphed into numerous training courses and classroom experiences that focus on EOS as well as additional leadership, teamwork and communication skills.

“It is really going back to my teaching days, where I was handed a textbook and told, ‘Here, bring this novel to life,’” Sermak says.

Through her coaching, Sermak focuses on the development of meaningful relationships and promoting the use of emotional intelligence concepts to enhance teamwork and efficiency.

Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand, use and manage your own emotions in positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathize with others, overcome challenges and defuse conflict. This concept, along with EOS principles, increases communication skills and improves interpersonal relationships by keeping the human element in mind, encouraging people to be vulnerable when appropriate and motivating them to ask for help when needed. As a result, people connect personally and build trust, which is critical to success.

Ricky Harrison, TSS Production Team Lead, says the principles of Sermak’s message are especially important today when people are losing in-person interactions due to emails, text messages and social media.

“You treat others the way you want to be treated. That goes a long way,” he says. “And some of those things that she’s taught me and worked with me on have helped me make those connections and have those connections with those guys out on the floor.”

Arnaudo adds that this trusting environment started with TSS leaders and trickled its way to the managers and then the rest of the team.

“It’s easier to work cross-departmentally when the managers are communicating well and there’s trust with them,” she says, adding that Sermak took a pivotal role in this.

Sermak adds that if you can utilize emotional intelligence principles in the workplace and then carry them over to your home life, it contributes to continuous personal improvement overall.

“She’s truly made my professional and my personal life so much better,” Arnaudo says. “She’s given me a lot more confidence and tools that I can use for the rest of my life.”

It is because of Sermak’s ingenuity and ability to bring multiple principles together for the benefit of Total Security Solutions and future industry professionals that she is being recognized as the 2024 Manufacturing Talent Champion.
The Manufacturing Talent Champion award is part of the annual Manufacturing Excellence Awards which celebrates the leaders and products that are pushing the industry forward. Learn more about the awards program and gala.