My Sterling Journey: From Office Coordinator to Associate Quality Assurance Specialist

Name: Kailyn Jordan

Current role: Associate Quality Assurance Specialist

Joined Sterling: May 2023

Kailyn joined Sterling in 2021 as Office Coordinator at our North Carolina facility after working in various project management roles. She has since moved into our quality department where she works as an Associate Quality Assurance Specialist. Read about her Sterling journey below.

What was your background before joining Sterling? 

I studied biology initially at Averett University in Virginia but decided to switch to a major in business administration as I wasn’t sure at this point whether I wanted to go into the science field. Since graduating in 2018 I have gone on to do my master’s at Averett University, also in business administration.

Whilst studying at university, I worked in various management roles within the retail industry before moving on to my first Project Manager role for a marketing solutions agency. I really enjoyed this role as it gave me a good understanding of data entry, customer service and other administrative tasks.

Whilst completing my master’s degree I got a job as a Project Manager for a 3PL company, working with large organisations such as Bloomingdales, Amazon and Target, overseeing projects, ensuring compliance during production and shipping, and managing inventory.

Can you tell us about your career so far at Sterling?

In 2021, I moved from Virginia to North Carolina. I knew I wanted a role at a company where I could progress in my career, and this is when I saw the job opening at Sterling. Sterling is a well-known organisation in the area, so I was excited when I saw that they had a vacancy for an Office Coordinator at the North Carolina site. Due to working in various administrative and document coordination roles during my time at university, I felt my skills and knowledge were well suited to this role and I was lucky enough to be successful.

This role involved supporting with purchasing requirements, processing invoices, coordinating events for the site, and other administrative work. I found the events coordinating the most enjoyable part of this role, whether this was organising site socials for our employees or supporting with customer visits.

Although I enjoyed this role, I was keen to broaden my skills and knowledge. So, I spoke to our Site Head, Mat Minardi, who supported me in finding another role within the organisation where I could continue to grow. The role of Document Control Coordinator came up and the whole team were very supportive of me transitioning into this position. I had some previous experience in document control, so it felt like the role was a good fit for me.

I started in this position in January 2022, and it provided me with a lot of insight and exposure into the quality side of the business, so this was very interesting to see and really sparked my interest in quality.

I was then promoted to Associate Quality Assurance Specialist (AQAS). I was really pleased about this move as I’ve always been someone who enjoys a challenge, and this was an opportunity to gain more knowledge about the industry.

My role as AQAS holds a variety of responsibilities which support the day-to-day operations of the North Carolina site, ranging from reviewing documentation, processes, and batch records to overseeing special programs.

How did you find moving roles within Sterling?

The move from Office Coordinator to the quality department was a big step out of my comfort zone, but I knew it was the right move in order to expand my skills and knowledge, and to go further within the company. It can sometimes feel quite overwhelming moving between roles or departments, but there are so many people at the site who are on hand to help and willing to support in whatever way they can, which made the transition so much easier.

In terms of my move between Document Control Coordinator and Associate Quality Assurance Specialist, this was more of a natural development between roles as my experience in the department increased.

Where do you see your career going in the future?

I loved my time working as a Project Manager when I was at university, and ultimately this is an area I could see myself going back into should the opportunity arise. I really want to continue to develop my career at Sterling and see what else I can achieve here.

What do you enjoy the most about working at Sterling?

Sterling has been so supportive in providing me with the opportunity to progress in my career which is one of my favourite things about working here. If you want to experience other departments or try something new, the team is so willing to work with you to make this happen. If you have an idea, they fully embrace it and work with you to make it happen. It’s great to work in a collaborative environment like this with like-minded colleagues.