about us

See how MFG Works!

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about us

See how MFG Works!

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who we are

The Manufacturing Works Summit is the premier regional conference focused on manufacturing talent throughout western Pennsylvania. The conference, coordinated by Catalyst Connection, is focused on making the region a national model for collaboration while supporting the local economy through the strength of the manufacturing sector.

The purpose of the Manufacturing Works Summit is to:

  • Provide meaningful dialogue and collaboration among the manufacturing companies and supporting organizations of the greater western Pennsylvania region
  • Create awareness of and access to the vast array of recruiting, talent development, and career-supporting resources available in our region
  • Spark innovative new program offerings, partnerships, and connections that will elevate the manufacturing industry in the region to a world-class region that attracts and retains companies and talent
  • Provide an opportunity for local manufacturers, education, and nonprofit community to network

The Manufacturing Works Summit is the premier regional conference focused on manufacturing talent throughout western Pennsylvania. The conference, coordinated by Catalyst Connection, is focused on making the region a national model for collaboration while supporting the local economy through the strength of the manufacturing sector.

The purpose of the Manufacturing Works Summit is to:

Provide meaningful dialogue and collaboration among the manufacturing companies and supporting organizations of the greater western Pennsylvania region

Create awareness of and access to the vast array of recruiting, talent development, and career-supporting resources available in our region

Spark innovative new program offerings, partnerships, and connections that will elevate the manufacturing industry in the region to a world-class region that attracts and retains companies and talent

Provide an opportunity for local manufacturers, education, and nonprofit community to network

Who Should Attend This Conference?

Anyone who has a passion for manufacturing and for attracting/developing manufacturing talent. The conference is primarily aimed at representatives from manufacturing companies, but workforce nonprofits, school administrators, college representatives and other local leaders are welcome to attend.

 

meet Catalyst Connection

Catalyst Connection is a private not-for-profit organization headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We provide consulting and training services to small manufacturers in southwestern Pennsylvania, accelerating revenue growth and improving productivity. Through active collaboration with our clients and the manufacturing community, we contribute to the growth, vibrancy, and ongoing robustness of manufacturing in our region.

Catalyst Connection is supported, in part, by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Community and Economic Development, and by the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership.

We Succeed When Our Clients Succeed

As a non-profit 501(c)3 firm, Catalyst Connection is not motivated by making large profits but by reporting the success stories of our manufacturing clients. We can provide you with a free consultation to help you determine the best place to put your business improvement efforts.

Click here to learn more about us or contact us.

meet the human capital team of catalyst

Nate Broadus

Nate Broadus

Workforce Specialist, Catalyst Connection

In his position as Workforce Specialist, Nate engages local job seekers, community organizations and employers via the REAL Jobs Initiative to create new employment pathways…

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Scott Dietz

Scott Dietz

Director, Workforce Initiatives, Catalyst Connection

Scott is responsible for the program development and delivery of Catalyst Connection’s STEM initiatives. These include an in-school project based program called Adventures in Technology and two manufacturing…

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Kristen Goodell

Kristen Goodell

Manager of Workforce Partnerships, Catalyst Connection

Kristen is a strategic leader through powerful partner collaborations, committed to career equity and empowering others with skills and confidence…

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Hannah Kusenko

Hannah Kusenko

Project Manager Assistant, Education Initiatives, Catalyst Connection

Hannah has been with Catalyst Connection since July of 2017, joining the organization as a recent graduate from Slippery Rock University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration…

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Mara Peduto

Mara Peduto

Consultant, Workforce Development, Catalyst Connection

Mara joined Catalyst Connection in 2008, since then she has worked several positions focused on operational excellence, workforce development and project management…

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David Rea

David Rea

Managing Director of Human Capital Team, Catalyst Connection

In his position as an Organizational Development Consultant, David specializes in helping manufacturers optimize employees through hiring, development and retention best practices.

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MFG Works event photo
MFG Works event photo
MFG Works event photo
MFG Works event photo

what they’re
saying

The summit really put a focus on what we are trying to as educators...create the pipeline of talent to be successful in the workforce. This event allowed me to reflect on what we are offering our students and how to align them with the ways to obtain the necessary skills to be successful in this region. The event was well planned out and allowed for everything to learn from one another. Keep up the great work!|Listening to all speakers to begin to broaden our horizons as we develop a dynamic workforce! Great work by all involved!!|We appreciated the quality of networking and speakers at the event.|Overall it was a great experience for me not knowing what it should be I was very happy with everything|Excellent event. You would never know this was the inaugural summit, it was so well planned and executed. I'm looking forward to seeing how the work the US Navy has asked my company to do in the Western PA region can learn from and support the amazing work that is being done through Catalyst Connection.|Great lineup of speakers, the media was spot on no issues around that. The conference was run very efficiently so people stayed engaged. I thought it was really well done from the speaker/attendee point of you. I think the piece I was disappointed in was that at lunchtime we weren’t sitting at large round tables so that you could at least exchange cards and information with 8 to 12 people from the conference. It’s always challenging to just try to mill around and find people especially without an attendee list ahead of time.|Great opportunity for in-person networking|Let’s do this more often than once per year!|Love it - one of best conferences I have attended.|This was terrific! Would love to bring this to Fayette County or virtually to reach more employers.|The content was great, very useful information. Really liked the panel discussion.|I liked the number of speakers and ability to learn about all of the opportunities. Thanks for allowing us at LifesWork to participate.