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Nancy Wilson, Morrison Container CEO receives Big Shoes Award

Nancy Wilson, CEO of Morrison Container Handling Solutions, was named recipient of the 5th Annual Jack Lanigan Sr. Memorial Big Shoes Award, a special event recognizing innovation and achievements in manufacturing.

Nancy Wilson
Nancy Wilson

The award, which showcases and celebrates those who support education and workforce programs in Chicago’s Southland manufacturing community, is a testament to Morrison’s determination to shift the industry forward by advancing education and advocating the best and brightest in engineering and manufacturing. Guiding the company by core values rooted in education, she ensures the company is committed to continuing education through formal and informal settings, making this award a humble honor for her and Morrison. Wilson was also recently honored in Crain’s Chicago as a Notable Woman in Manufacturing.

“I’m truly honored to receive this award,” says Wilson. “Jack Lanigan is legendary in the Southland area, and I’m honored to be recognized in his name.”

Wilson’s devotion to education advancement is apparent. Wilson is Chair of the Association for Packaging & Processing Technologies Future Workforce Committee, and a Leadership Team member of the Calumet Manufacturing Industry Sector Partnership. At the secondary education level, she serves on the Purdue University Northwest Chancellors Advisory Board as well as on the College of Technology Dean’s Advisory Committee. In 2012, the University named a mechatronics laboratory for Wilson and her husband, Morrison’s founder and President Nick Wilson, to recognize their contributions to the mechatronics engineering technology program. She is committed to Southland economic development programs and support many local programs, including the Southworks Robotics Competition and Homewood Science Center’s Girls STEAM Ahead.

As CEO of Morrison, Nancy Wilson has not only dedicated herself and the company to education and workforce programs but she has created a national sales force, expanded operations to a second manufacturing facility in Glenwood, and doubled the company’s workforce, resulting in more than 70% sales growth since 2012. Following Morrison’s Support Built In philosophy, Wilson’s commitment to seeking innovation for the industry is apparent in her investment in IT to drive internal process efficiencies and in Morrison’s implemented VR and AR technologies that enable remote factory acceptance tests and in-field diagnostics, ushering in an evolution for the industry and the next generation shaping it.

Building Morrison’s reputation for the most dependable container handling products in the industry and unmatched customer service began with Wilson’s work at Ford Motor Co., where her 25-year career in Sales and Marketing allowed her to hold leadership positions from international operations to strategic marketing to new business development. Wrapping together this knowledge into her CEO position at Morrison, she is guiding the company toward an innovative future while remaining focused on how Morrison’s knowledge and expertise can evolve the industry at large.

Through her work on the Executive Council of PMMI’s Packaging and Processing Leadership Network, she is seeking a way to bridge the gap of between women in manufacturing while also serving on the Board of Directors at PMMI and leading as the Chairperson of the Education Committee. In 2016, Morrison was awarded the National Women’s Business Enterprise Certification from the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, certifying Morrison is a business owned, operated, and controlled by a woman, one of the many ways Wilson is improving the narrative of women in manufacturing.

“Morrison has always been passionate about advancing education, and it has been my pleasure to continue this never-ending journey. I believe education is the key to individual success and what is needed for our country in these turbulent times,” Wilson said.

Nancy Wilson will receive the Jack Lanigan Sr. Memorial Big Shoes Awards on September 12 at Ravisloe Country Club in Homewood, IL. For more information on the event and award, visit www.csedcworks.org. All proceeds from the ceremony and reception will support the Southworks Engineering and Robotics Olympics.

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