Washington Evening Journal
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Carla McNamee is more than you think
Carla McNamee
AnnaMarie Kruse
Oct. 26, 2023 12:50 pm
MT. PLEASANT — When people think of Carla McNamee they usually think of her as the sheriff’s wife, but not many know she is also the Chief Financial Officer at Lomont Molding.
“Outside of being a CFO, Rich and I raised four children,” McNamee said. “Outside work, people don't know me as a CFO,” she said. “People really didn't know me when I worked at Hearth & Home as the Vice President General Manager because I was always the sheriff’s wife.”
In the same way she is fully devoted to being the sheriff’s wife, a mom of four, and community volunteer when she is not at work, she gives her all as a CFO.
McNamee started her career as female leader the manufacturing world working in finance at Hearth and Home right out of college in 1995.
“When I started at Hearth there were very few women in leadership,” McNamee said. “I think there was one female on the leadership staff at that time. When she left there were zero on the leadership staff. And when I look over as a controller, I was really the only female on the leadership side for about five years.”
For McNamee that was an interesting dynamic because she grew up on a farm with a mom that drove the big trucks for their farming business right alongside all the other men.
“I was always used to that,” she said. “We were always surrounded by males, so it didn’t bother me. I didn’t even have to think twice about it.”
As she worked for Hearth and Home, McNamee grew into those leadership positions.
She started as a staff accountant, moved on to accounting manager, then controller, then vice president and general manager.
She then ran the Hearth and Home facility in Mt. Pleasant for approximately 10 years before taking a director of finance role at the corporate level of Hearth and Home Technologies for the remainder of her 24 years with the company.
“I decided it was time for a change, and Jason Bender [Lomont President], and I have been friends and competitors for a long time,” McNamee said. “We were competing for talent as he ran Lomont and I ran Hearth.”
The two served on many community boards together and at one point she mentioned to him that she might be looking to make a change.
Six months later, Bender called McNamee asking her to join his team instead of being competitors.
“So, within about eight weeks, I transitioned from my corporate Hearth job to the CFO over here and haven’t looked back,” she said.
While she says the products are different between the two companies, a lot is the same, and she has strengths in manufacturing finance.
According to McNamee her strengths partnered with Bender’s strength complement one another very well and knowing her strengths and the strengths of those around her is what makes her successful at her job.
“I think people that I have worked with will tell you that I am very open,” she said. “I tell everyone that I don’t know everything and I don’t need to know everything.”
With her years of experience in business, and thanks to the example of her parents growing up, McNamee has figured out when to ask questions for understanding to make a better team but not expect to be an expert in everything.
“I like to surround myself with experts in what they do because we all bring strength, we all bring opportunities,” McNamee said.
Comments: AnnaMarie.Ward@southeastiowaunion.com