As March comes to a close, The Shippers Group is celebrating National Women's History Month by asking our associates about the importance of recognizing the inspiring women in our lives.

Yolanda Maxie is an Account Manager having worked for The Shippers Group for nine months. Born and raised in Mansfield, Louisiana by her grandparents, Yolanda has raised four children of her own. "My first job was to make sure my kids graduated high school and college (not an option), and now I can focus more on myself," said Yolanda. "Our job as parents is to make sure they do better than we did.”

Her oldest, Cordall graduated from LSU Baton Rouge with a degree in Industrial Engineering, daughter Summer graduated from Wiley College with a Sociology degree, daughter Diamond is in her third year at Ohio State University majoring in Physiology and daughter Amber is in her second year at Tyler Junior College majoring in Biology. Prior to joining The Shippers Group, Yolanda worked in the Logistics and Oil & Gas Industries.   

 We asked Yolanda what she felt are some of the challenges currently faced by women:  

“Some of the most significant challenges that women face in their careers center around lack of recognition for their tremendous talents and contributive efforts, as well as balancing their career and home life. This fact hinders a lot of women’s ability to truly feel as if they are appropriately valued within their work environment. I can personally attest that women often go unrecognized for their contributions and are the objects of doubt due to their demanding family lives and work responsibilities. I can also say that these oversights are an injustice and these doubts are misplaced, because women are truly amazing beings capable of doing great things. 

The good news is that times are changing and when women speak up about all of these challenges they consistently  face in the work place they spark a change for not only themselves, but for the women around them. When women are mentored and championed, they quickly grow into leadership roles, and as a result their companies increase revenues year after year. I find the time to stand for something bigger than my own success, and to be the kind of person that no matter where I am or what I am working on I always add value to those around me so that we can all rise and shine together. This is why I am a firm believer that empowering women/others will always empower you."

The Shippers Group is a leading national distribution company with 13 operations in 6 states. The company employs about 1,200 associates and is committed to training and developing associates like Yolanda Maxie to have long and successful careers at The Shippers Group. For more information on current career opportunities with The Shippers Group, visit our Employment page.