AirBoss Engineered Products has always been about the people, especially for Mary Mason, the company’s Senior Human Resources Business Partner. People up and down the workforce ladder at AirBoss are what drive the organization’s goals, and it’s investing in AirBoss’s people that keeps Mary passionate about her work.
“We have a lot of great team members here at AirBoss,” she shares. “We have a really strong leadership team. My team is great. I love working with the HR team.”
Understanding the ins and outs of the psychology behind people’s motivations fueled Mary’s drive as she jumped into the AirBoss world after college. And it’s through applying her skills and expressing her talents that she’s able to help craft company policy.
From Intern to HR Business Partner
“I originally studied psychology in college,” says Mary. “I thought maybe something more generalized and in business would give me a better career outlook.”
“When I started taking business classes, I realized just how much those psychological concepts could be applied to motivating people, retaining people, and engaging employees. I focused on HR, and I started as an HR intern at AirBoss in October of 2018.”
After college, Mary began working full-time as an HR coordinator for the company.
“At that point, I started working more with the employees,” she says. “I worked on some employee engagement initiatives and coordinated some social responsibility initiatives that give back to the community.”
Mary spent her time as HR Coordinator working alongside AirBoss employees to organize donation drives, address company issues, and improve company communication. Her journey from intern to coordinator was one that was encouraged by her AirBoss mentors.
“They were very supportive,” Mary says. “The strategy with our team has always been to give people things and see how they do. They continued to give me different projects and responsibilities.”
Those responsibilities kept Mary progressing toward loftier career goals within the company. She worked her way through the HR Coordinator position, on to HR Business Partner, and into her current role as Senior HR Business Partner.
Spirits and Goals Are High in Human Resources
Mary continues to grow and thrive as an HR professional thanks, in part, to a company-wide effort to improve AirBoss employee competencies. Mason thinks back to how the organization goes out of its way to offer regular orientations and training. This, with the inclusion of her help, is a way to not only welcome new hires to the team but to continue to sharpen the onboarding process.
She acts as a bridge between employee concerns and company policy-making, and this feels like a win-win to Mary. It’s through getting to know the people at AirBoss that she comes to understand what motivates everyone from the factory floor to the executive offices. This, in turn, moves the company closer to achieving progressive and comprehensive human resource goals.
HR is About the People
Coming full circle from psychology to human resources, Mary attributes her daily successes to connecting with AirBoss employees and working together toward common goals.
When we asked Mary what part of her job is most rewarding, she replied, “I would say getting to work with the associate team members on the floor. I’ve come to know many of them very well. It’s great to see them progress in their careers as well.”
Mary looks forward to taking on more projects—like contract negotiations and learning management systems—to advance her own career and expand her company’s horizons. She admits that continuing to learn more and rounding out her knowledge both in HR and at AirBoss is invaluable.
When she’s not at AirBoss, Mary enjoys riding horses and competing in the local hunter/jumper circuit. She’s also an avid reader and an aspiring chef and baker. “I’m not the best at either,” she jokes. “But I like to try new recipes and experiment on my friends.”
