August 2023 Employee Spotlight – Jenn Kotajarvi

Jenn Kotajarvi, Materials Supervisor | Since June 2023

The Materials Supervisor’s role at Trachte is to manage inventory levels and oversee all material handling including receiving and running material between Fab, Weld, the Office, & the Production facilities. Jenn started with Trachte as a Service Coordinator in June 2022, and recently took over as Materials Supervisor. We caught up with Jenn to find out how she is settling into her new role.

What is a typical day like for you?
“I start my day reconciling the previous day’s receipts and preparing with my team for a day of supporting production, purchasing and service. After making sure my team has the information, tools, and resources they need to tackle the day I touch base with production supervisors on what’s coming next and what we still need to wrap up. Then I spend the middle of my day bridging communication gaps and hunting down material.”

What is your favorite part of your job?
“I love solving mysteries, winning treasure hunts, and then setting up processes to not have to play that game again. Learning how or why we do things, and being able to impact improvement allows me to love working at Trachte.”

After the mysteries of the day are solved, you can find Jenn at local short tracks during the summer and at Dells Raceway Park on Saturday nights supporting her boyfriend’s Pro Late Model team. Jenn is also a WI DNR Hunter Safety Instructor and teaches alongside her dad. “I’ve participated in a bullseye pistol league with my dad at the Stoughton Conservation Club since high school and serve on the Board of Directors. We hold twice-annual hunter safety courses at the club.”

Final question, tell us something people might find surprising about you.
“I’ve watched the General Hospital soap for 20 years. I started watching in a weak attempt to bond with my former mother-in-law. We’ve parted ways, but my daily stories live on strong!”