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Roseville, Calif. – Dr. Jennifer Camota Luebke, Chief Workforce Inclusion Officer at PRIDE Industries, will receive the prestigious “Most Influential Filipina Woman in the World” award from the Foundation for Filipina Women’s Network (FWN) at the 18^th Annual Filipina Leadership Global Summit in Lisbon, Portugal.

The Most Influential Filipina Woman in the World award (popularly known as Global FWN100™) was launched in the United States in 2006 and expanded its search globally in 2013. Global FWN100™awardees have reached the pinnacle of their careers, breaking the “glass ceiling” at the C-Suite level in business, or reaching leadership positions in government and politics.

“The Global FWN100™ awardees are innovators and thought leaders, successful entrepreneurs, rising stars under age 35, practitioners, and public service advocates,” said Marily Mondejar, Founder and CEO at the Foundation for Filipina Women’s Network. “They are magnificent women doing extraordinary work and blazing a trail for the next generation of Filipina leaders.”

Camota Luebke was selected from an outstanding field of nominees from 10 countries. She was recognized in the “Innovators & Thought Leaders” category, which highlights women who have launched a new enterprise, created a new learning function, or completely overhauled an existing way of doing things. Recipients of this award have made a tangible difference in their communities and in the lives of many people.

“I’m excited about the opportunity to meet and collaborate with so many dynamic, innovative women,” said Camota Luebke. “And I want to thank FWN for bringing the Filipina women of the world together to plan the future of our community, and to mentor our next generation of leaders.”

Camota Luebke leads PRIDE Industries’ workforce inclusion programming strategy and operations, using innovation and data to develop integrated, community-based employment pathways for people with disabilities. As an advocate for workplace inclusion, she influences employment policies by working with local, state, and national legislative offices, as well as community advocacy organizations. Her lived experience as a parent to an adult son with an intellectual disability—along with her academic research on leadership beliefs and practices that inform disability-inclusive learning communities—give her a unique perspective and insight into the population that PRIDE Industries serves.

In addition to her work in the business community, Camota Luebke is the co-founder of Ability Revolution, Inc., a not-for-profit organization which produces film and media projects that influence the way society views people with disabilities. In 2018, Camota Luebke produced an award-winning documentary, “You Can Be BRAVE: Breaking Barriers to Inclusion.”

“PRIDE Industries is very fortunate to have someone of Jennifer’s caliber on our executive team leading our innovative workforce inclusion programs,” said Jeff Dern, CEO of PRIDE Industries. “Her combination of expertise in business and disability inclusion – and her passion for our mission – are key to opening more doors for people with disabilities and taking our employment services to a higher level.”

Founded in 1966, PRIDE Industries is the nation’s leading employer of people with disabilities. The social enterprise provides manufacturing, logistics, and facilities maintenance services to fuel its mission of creating employment for people with disabilities. Camota Luebke joined the company in 2021.

About PRIDE Industries

PRIDE Industries delivers business excellence with a positive social impact. A social enterprise, we provide facilities operations and maintenance services, custodial services, contract manufacturing, supply chain management, packaging and fulfillment services, and staffing services to private and public organizations nationwide. Founded in 1966, PRIDE Industries’ mission is to create employment for people with disabilities. Through personalized employment services, we help individuals realize their true potential and lead more independent lives. PRIDE Industries proves the value of its inclusive workforce model through operational success across multiple industries every day.

About Foundation for Filipina Women’s Network (FWN)

FWN is the organization for the Most Influential Filipina Women Awardees from 34 countries. They are nominated by their peers and selected annually by the award selection team of awardees from previous years. FWN is committed to leveraging its talent pool of accomplished women by publishing their leadership journeys and encouraging their global footprint through projects that benefit their local communities. FWN seeks to increase the influence of Filipina women as leaders and policymakers on economic, social justice, and women’s rights in the private and public sectors. FWN campaigns to increase the odds that more Filipina women advance to the C-suite influential positions in companies worldwide. More at: www.FilipinaWomensNetwork.org

Media Contact

Kat Maudru

(916) 753-4339

media@prideindustries.com

PRIDE Industries is a social enterprise delivering business excellence to public and private organizations nationwide.

Ready to take your cleaning and custodial services to the next level? Check out these recommendations. Explore cleaning industry trade shows, courses, and more.

2022 Greenbuild International Conference & Expo
Nov. 1-3, 2022
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Does green cleaning feature in your custodial services? Discover the latest innovations at this event designed for leaders whose remit includes sustainability. Learn more.

Cleaning Management Institute (CMI) Custodial Technician Expert Course
Nov. 2-3, 2022
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Want to ‘brush up’ on best practices for cleaning carpets, hard surfaces, and restrooms? This curriculum counts toward the CMI Expert Custodial Technician certification. Learn more.

CMI-Certified Workloading Specialist Course
Nov. 3, 2022
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How do you transform the culture of cleaning? Find out in this course designed to help teams and managers become more productive, while satisfying customer expectations. Learn more.

American Cleaning Institute (ACI) Convention and Annual Meeting
Jan. 30 – Feb. 4, 2023
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Navigating the global cleaning supply chain? It’s an ongoing challenge. Finetune your capabilities, as you network with cleaning product producers and supply chain experts. Learn more.

ISSA Hygieia Network Conferences
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The 2023 EXPERIENCE Conference & Exhibition
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The Clean Show 2023
May 18-21, 2023
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The world’s largest laundry expo, attracting nearly 12,000 attendees to explore equipment, and services. As a co-owner of the show, TRSA conducts the Clean Show Experience. Learn more.

Let’s Talk Business

Why wait for an event, when you can explore best practices in commercial cleaning today? Speak with our custodial services team, certified CIMS-Green Building with Honors.

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Here are 10 upcoming conferences and events that supply chain and logistics professionals should be aware of:

JumpStart 2023:
January 23-25, 2023, Atlanta, GA

This three-day supply chain event offers both educational and networking opportunities. In-depth panel discussions focus on supply chain trends, transportation regulations, emerging technologies, and infrastructure. The lineup is tailored to provide carriers, shippers, 3PLs, and other professionals with a full picture of the multimodal supply chain.

Manifest:
January 31-February 2, 2023, The Paris, Las Vegas, NV

Billed as a showcase of the cutting edge of logistics and supply chain trends, Manifest 2023 brings together industry leaders, innovators, investors—and anyone interested in new developments in the supply chain.

19th Annual RLA Conference and Expo:
February 7-9, 2023, Las Vegas, NV
(Pre-events begin the afternoon of February 6)

Billed as the only worldwide event for reverse logistics professionals, this conference offers three days of powerful keynote speakers, content-driven panel discussions, and a multitude of networking opportunities. Pre-event activities include Top Golf and Academic Roundtable.

America’s Procurement Congress 2023
March 21-22, 2023, Eden Roc, Miami, FL

This year the focus is on “Total Procurement”—integrating multiple stakeholders in the procurement process, including upstream, internal, and downstream actors. Two days of panel discussions provide high educational value, and the conference offers more than 12 hours of networking opportunities.

Gartner Supply Chain Symposium:
May 8-10, 2023, Orlando, FL

This conference and expo delivers insights, strategies, and frameworks for chief supply chain officers (CSCOs) and supply chain leaders to think big, make bold moves, and drive real impact within their organizations.

American Supply Chain Summit 2022:
May 16-17, 2023, Dallas, TX

The Supply Chain Summit serves as an annual platform to exchange ideas and collaborate on the impact of market dynamics and new technologies for current and future supply chain and operations leaders. The event offers in-depth discussions on fostering innovation, maximizing supply chain profitability, and increasing visibility and flexibility to mitigate risk.

Supply Chain USA 2023:
May 17-18, 2023, Chicago, IL

Backed by Reuters, this conference is billed as the only event covering end-to-end supply chain, built around the “Plan, Source, Make, Deliver” concept. Here’s your chance to hear a broad array of speakers from some of the world’s most successful Fortune 500 companies. #SCUSA23

2023 ASCM CONNECT Annual Conference:
September 11-13, 2023, Louisville, KY

As the largest non-profit association for supply chain companies, ASCM is an unbiased partner, connecting companies around the world to thought leaders in all aspects of supply chain management. If you’re interested in presenting at this conference, submit your abstract to the event organizers by December 27, 2022.

CSCMP Edge Supply Chain Conference and Exhibition:
October 1-4, 2023, Orlando, FL

This conference offers more than 100 informational sessions covering all aspects of the end-to-end supply chain. Speakers include renowned experts and industry leaders from Fortune 500 companies.

Modex 2024:
March 11-14, 2024, Atlanta, GA

This event offers information about new supply chain trends and gives you a chance to observe next-generation technology and equipment in action, so that you can make forward-thinking decisions about your supply chain.

Ready to take your supply chain and logistics processes to the next level?

Partner with PRIDE Industries to streamline your operations, drive customer satisfaction, and improve your bottom line.

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When most people think of supply chain risks, they picture ships stuck in port, factories closed due to COVID lockdowns, or empty shelves where component parts once sat. But these physical obstacles are not the only risks that manufacturers face. Cyberthreats have been growing steadily over the last few years, and during the pandemic, these supply chain security risks escalated.

You might think that digital attacks are a threat only from your third-party software vendors. In the SolarWinds hack, for example, more than 18,000 customers of the IT management company uploaded a malicious update, compromising their systems. But the attack didn’t stop there. Once cybercriminals infiltrated a company’s network, linked systems gave them access to that company’s partners and customers as well. The fact is, any vendor whose software talks to yours—such as billing and payment systems—can compromise your company’s security.

Linked Systems: A Benefit and a Risk

Just-in-time manufacturing has always required constant communication and a high degree of collaboration between manufacturers and their suppliers. During the pandemic, this collaboration increased, as manufacturers sought more efficient ways to source raw materials and component parts. Timely data-sharing became even more critical, and many companies increased their internet-enabled connections to suppliers.

While tighter collaboration allowed companies to improve the predictability of their supply chain, it also created new entry points for cybercriminals to try to exploit. In short, by connecting more closely with suppliers, these companies increased their own attack surface.

And cybercriminals were quick to take advantage of this broader target. According to the National Association of Manufacturers, in 2020, the number of cyberattacks on manufacturers spiked by more than 300% from the previous year, accounting for 22% of all attacks across all sectors, up from 7% in 2019.

A New Twist on an Old Supply Chain Security Risk: Phishing

The surge in cybercrime isn’t driven solely by direct attacks like SolarWinds. Phishing is also a growing problem, as criminals employ new technologies to take this old hacking technique to a new level.

The Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) reported that in the first quarter of 2022, there were 1,025,968 total phishing attacks—the first time the three-month total has exceeded one million. Given that email users are more savvy than they used to be, how is this possible?

It’s simple: Today’s cybercriminals have gone way beyond simply faking emails. Some use sophisticated social engineering techniques like AI-generated voicemails and deepfake video recordings. People know to be wary about email, but how many people think to question the authenticity of the voice at the other end of a phone call?

Even the relatively low-tech business email compromise (BEC) attacks have gotten better. Fake websites are much harder to differentiate from the legitimate versions, and cybercriminals now clone emails from legitimate employees to create urgent requests that sound authentic.

Today’s criminals are also more patient than ever, and they do their homework on both the person they’re targeting and the person they’re mimicking, in order to create an email or a call that’s highly realistic. And with people posting their personal details on multiple social media sites—including LinkedIn—it’s easier than ever for hackers to glean the information they need to successfully impersonate someone.

A One-Two Punch: Combining Hacking Techniques

Hackers are patient. They’re careful. And they think long term. They know that by working through suppliers, their attack may take months to execute, and they’re willing to wait. This is why more and more, malicious actors are switching from attacking a company directly to infiltrating their suppliers. Once in a supplier’s system, undetected, they have time to plan an attack against your company.

In this situation, more often than not, the malicious actor will assume the identity of a trusted contact at the supplier, and then reach out to your company. This technique, called spoofing, allows criminals to create highly credible phishing emails, calls, and even videos. Many companies with excellent security have nevertheless been infiltrated through their suppliers’ systems.

Digital Supply Chain Security: A Growing Concern

Digital threats to supply chain security are a growing problem. That’s why five years ago, the National Counterintelligence and Security Center (NCSC) designated April as “National Supply Chain Integrity Month.” The goal of this annual awareness campaign is to encourage companies—especially providers of information and communications technology—to fortify their digital security.

And businesses are indeed becoming more aware of the issue. Many companies, manufacturers included, are taking action. According to a survey conducted by PwC last year, nearly half of all manufacturers provided information or assistance to third parties—including suppliers—to help them improve their own cybersecurity. Nearly four in ten survey respondents (36%) said they’d rewritten contracts with third parties to mitigate risk, and 30% went as far as terminating partnerships with third-party vendors because of unacceptable security practices.

Cybersecurity Risk Management

There are several steps you can take to make your company a hard target for cybercriminals. Strong data encryption may be the most important. The ideal standard for encryption is the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), a symmetric block cipher used by federal agencies to safeguard classified information. AES has been available for commercial use for more than 20 years, and provides excellent protection against cyberattacks.

AES encryption can be found in many of today’s frequently used devices, applications, and networks. WhatsApp messages, for example, are encrypted using 256-bit AES encryption. Google Cloud uses this standard as well. If you’re system isn’t making use of AES, it’s time for an upgrade.

However, even great encryption can’t prevent attacks that come from security flaws in software, which is why it’s important to monitor your systems for unusual activity. Zero-day attacks, in which cybercriminals exploit a security flaw before the software maker has issued a patch, are impossible to predict—you can’t fix what you don’t know is broken. But unusual activity can be your first signal that something is wrong.

Monitor Your Suppliers

Even if your company’s data is strongly encrypted, and you’re vigilant about software and system monitoring, you can still be vulnerable to attack through your suppliers. Any vendor software that interacts with your own is open to exploitation, putting your own systems at risk. This is why it’s critical to monitor systems for unusual activity.

And to repel phishing attacks, it’s important to have protocols in place that require staff to double check sensitive requests, and to conduct regular training in spotting fake communications. Here again, it’s just as important that your suppliers have these security protocols in place as well. Your vendor risk management program should include a yearly review of your supplier’s security protocols.

And because even the most secure systems still face some risk, make sure your company has an up-to-date incident response plan. Your company should have backup systems and emergency protocols in place, so that no time is wasted in assessing and repairing the damage from a successful hack. Last year, when Accenture fell victim to the LockBit ransomware attack, it was able to contain the threat right away by implementing a plan it had prepared well in advance.

The Accenture incident exemplifies what has become a truism in the business world: When it comes to system security, the companies that fare the best are the ones that plan for the worst.

A Secure Manufacturing Partner

At PRIDE Industries, we help companies increase profits by stabilizing their supply chains. Our ITAR registration demonstrates our ability to provide the highest levels of security, structure, and expertise. Working with us allows you to minimize the risk of disruption, while making a positive social impact with your business spend.

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According to the National Association of Manufacturers, in 2020, the number of cyberattacks on manufacturers spiked by more than 300% from the previous year.

The European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) has several recommendations to help companies reduce the risk of supplier-enabled cyberthreats:

identify and document all suppliers and service providers;
define risk criteria for different types of suppliers and services such as supplier and customer dependencies, critical software dependencies, single points of failure;
monitor supply chain risks and threats;
manage suppliers over the whole lifecycle of a product or service, including procedures to handle end-of-life products and components;
classify assets and information shared with or accessible to suppliers and define relevant procedures for accessing and handling them.