April 22, 2015
Link to the Smart Business – Cleveland Article
We had the opportunity to honor one of our great colleagues this morning, Maria Gaeta – Corporate Director of Human Resources at the Smart Business Northeast Ohio ‘Women Who Excel’ event. Maria received the Progressive Woman Award. When she received her award, she shared a quote from Oprah Winfrey with the audience, “Surround yourself with people that will help take you higher.” Maria, we are proud to have you around us! #leadership
Jim Wojtila has known Maria Gaeta for the past 10 years and has been fortunate to work with her for the last three years at Mar-Bal Inc. “While Maria is currently my direct report, she has chosen to report to the entire Mar-Bal workforce of 500 employees and does so in a positive, professional way,” says Wojtila, who serves as Mar-Bal’s CFO. Gaeta joined the plastic and injection molding company in November 2012 as corporate director of human resources. In addition to her role being new to the organization, Gaeta was the only woman serving in a senior leadership role. “While this would be a daunting task for many females, Maria quickly earned the trust of the entire organization, was promoted to a role on the executive committee and has earned the praises of all co-workers and business partners she works with,” Wojtila says. In her short time at Mar-Bal, Gaeta has helped develop an HR policies and procedures manual to ensure consistent and effective administration. She has also set up a new platform for payroll and benefits administration, performance management and recruiting, among other tasks. Gaeta has become integral to other HR initiatives as well and has Mar-Bal poised for continued growth.