We celebrated Women’s History Month in March, reminding ourselves of the accomplishments and contributions of women throughout the years to our culture and society. From science to politics, it is a chance to reflect on the trailblazing women who lead the way for change. And the women of Aiphone are no exception.
These women are working hard to ensure Aiphone continues to offer valuable solutions to industries across the globe. Please join us in recognizing the outstanding achievement and contributions of these Aiphone family members who also just happen to be amazing women.
Today’s blog features Mariko Kimura, a 28-year Aiphone veteran who is currently our Purchasing Manager. It also features Carleen C. Wellman, Senior Graphic Designer and Marketing Specialist, who just celebrated her 16th year with Aiphone.
What is the general day-to-day of your job?
Mariko: My day-to-day consists of inventory management, product forecasting, as well as logistics and supplier management.
Carleen: It’s tough to answer what my general day consists of – every day is different! Graphic designer, copywriter, literature coordinator, advertising coordinator, content strategist – I wear many hats at Aiphone. On any given day I may brainstorm with the Marketing Team on how best to bring a new security solution to market. We collaborate on the succinct messaging and call-to-action in our campaigns to clearly inform our dealers and consumers of the security benefits they get with our solutions. As the person who creates and manages our marketing literature, I continually work with our Technical Services, Sales, and Engineering Departments to bring clarity and brand integrity to our audiences. One of the major pieces I maintain is our general line catalog, which has been deemed by our dealers as “the best catalog in the security industry.” I work diligently with our internal teams to ensure our catalog and other literature are helpful and exceed our dealer’s needs so they can better serve their customers. Knowing our dealer base and being familiar with our products, it’s also my responsibility to vet advertising opportunities that are best for our company’s investment. I create the design work for our advertisements, and it’s also up to me to select the best placements for those designs to reach the right audience.
How did you come to work in the physical security industry?
Mariko: It wasn’t a career field I sought out purposely, as I did not intend on working in the security industry. You could say I kind of fell into the industry.
Carleen: Aiphone was expanding its Marketing Team and reached out directly to the Art Institute of Seattle, where I recently graduated with my degree in graphic design. During my first interview, I wasn’t sure who Aiphone was as a company, nor did I know anything about their product. I was just excited to be getting interviewed a few months after graduation. Flourishing my career at Aiphone was not something I considered at the time. Instead, I thought it would simply be that starter job to get my foot in the door as a new designer. Something to put on a future resume. I was wrong.
After my first year with Aiphone I realized this is a company I want to stand behind for the long haul. The people here are my tribe, we are a family. The products we manufacture are set to the highest of standards, which makes me proud to tout them in our materials. We all have the same goal to ensure that our dealers and consumers are confident in selecting our security brand because they know we offer trustworthy products they can rely on. Who would have thought that a security intercom manufacturer would have such an impact on a graphic designer? It did, and I’m here to say that I’ll be retiring with this company. I love working here.
How has the industry changed over the years?
Mariko: The importance of security has been significantly increased over last decade. Security is a part of our life not only business but also home, school, and institutions. Technology advancement also helped adding features with less cost.
Carleen: For me, the pace of the industry has changed drastically. It’s always been fast paced, but I feel like it’s speeding up. An idea for a product used to take two to three years for full development. Now I’m seeing products being released in as quick as six months. It’s incredible. But it also makes sense since these trends are in line with market demand. The touchless call sensor we currently released is a great example. That product would never have come to fruition if there wasn’t a need due to COVID-19. The need was so immediate, and the product was developed so quickly, that now future products are being developed with the new feature already built in.
Technology has grown by leaps and bounds – what are some of the major differences from when you first started at Aiphone?
Mariko: Our products were all analog systems when I started at Aiphone. Our new products are IP based, and software driven, enabling feature enhancement and bug fixes to be implemented by a firmware update initiated by the user, which is great.
Carleen: When I first started in 2005, the embedded HID® readers were just becoming the hot new thing we were offering. You could have the camera, speaker, call button, and card reader all in one sleek station. That was super exciting at the time. It’s so common now, the built-in card readers are almost expected. What has really changed with the technology is our ability to increase distances between stations and between buildings. Prior to our IP systems, the analog intercoms were limiting in their station capacity and wiring distances. Our enterprise-level end-users struggled to get clear, reliable security and communication throughout their large campuses. With the enhancements in our intercoms, we are now able to outfit and support so many more applications and niche scenarios than ever before.
What are some of the barriers to entry you see for women in the industry? How can the industry work to create more opportunities for women/raise awareness?
Mariko: Although sales and technical positions are mostly filled by male staff, marketing, finance, HR and customer service positions are filled by more female employees at Aiphone. I think that there are plenty of opportunities for women to get into the security industry and there’s a great breadth and depth to those opportunities.
What is your favorite part/most rewarding aspect about your current role/position/day-to-day of the security industry?
Mariko: It is good to know that our products provide security to homes, businesses, and communities. That makes me feel better that our company is serving our society. My responsibility is to increase the customer service level with fewer inventory. I enjoy dealing with numbers for sales analysis, forecasting, and cost reductions. When I see the result in numbers, that makes me very satisfied.
Carleen: At Aiphone, we have a unique camaraderie that is exceptional. I can honestly say that my colleagues and I truly value each other, which is huge for being happy in any industry. In a serious industry like security, we all find time to still smile and have an “it’s okay, you got this” attitude. We have people here that look out for each other. And we have dependable products that help others look out for each other too, that’s a win-win for me.
