As we think about International Women’s Day, we reflect on how many great women distributors, team members, colleagues, and friends we have in the Cypher Family.
We are honoured to present four women, from four different parts of the world, who are all connected as Cypher Environmental distributors and their commitment to making a difference in the world with their unique talents and strengths.
They are strong, driven, and motivated to make the world a better place with Cypher’s innovative products.
Today we celebrate these women in our distributor network by sharing their stories and recognizing their contribution to our industry and the communities in which they are a part of.
Motlapele Molefi
Modi Mining (South Africa)
Motla started her career in mining when the sector was facing challenges characterized by depressed commodity prices and increasing labour costs. Mines needed to increase their efficiencies to stay competitive and that’s when Motla says, “the window of opportunity opened, and I grabbed it with both hands.” She is now the Executive Director at an award-winning company, Modi Mining, and is responsible for business growth and sustainability as well as industry compliance.
With a long list of accolades to her name, she is most proud of being awarded 1st runner-up as company with most jobs created for 2017 by Black Umbrellas, “Knowing that I contribute towards the creation of jobs and adding value to livelihood of communities is one of my biggest achievements,” says Motla. About working in the mining industry, she says it constantly gives her an opportunity to come up with innovative and creative solutions for addressing challenges facing her clients.
Motla appreciates Cypher’s culture and values which promotes caring about livelihoods of communities which aligns with Modi Mining’s commitment to helping others through supporting socio-economic initiatives. “We are committed to intentionally using our business as a catalyst in helping others to help themselves, “ says Motla. Within these efforts lays the foundation for the continued success of women in science with their support of the Techno Girl foundation, a program that introduces girls to STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) careers.
Esma Al-Autman
McCue Engineering Contractors (British Columbia, Canada)
Esma’s path to success started with a Bachelor’s in Science Degree as a Chemistry Major with Distinction in Science Co-operative Education from the University of British Columbia, and she hasn’t stopped since. From her first co-op placement as a Laboratory Analyst, she quickly progressed in her career through her dedication and passion towards her work, networking within her industry, and connecting with many like-minded individuals that were enthusiastic about protecting the environment. This eventually led her towards sales and marketing roles where she could use her technical background to communicate the benefits of environmental solutions and services for various organizations.
She proudly holds the title of Director of Marketing and Business Development with the McCue Environmental Division that distributes environmentally friendly dust control and soil stabilization products (that’s us!). Esma says it’s encouraging to work in an industry that is becoming more responsible with resources and supports ways to involve local communities. “Whether it’s in-land preservation, environmental protection, or training and employment opportunities, we want to hear from local communities how we can be more responsible with our business and listen to their needs,” says Esma.
Ultimately working for McCue Engineering Contractors was one of Esma’s biggest accomplishments so far in her career. In a little under one year with the company, she feels she has done more for her career development with McCue than she has in the last 5 years of working in this industry. She feels supported by a company that is 50% female owned and boasts an impressive ESG plan, “as a young female professional, I do my best to bring in fresh ideas to the table when it comes to our marketing strategies. My words are valued and I am seen as equal to my employer.”
Elina Tervonen
Vumos Oy (Finland)
Meet Elina! She is the Managing Director and CEO of the family-owned business Vumos Ltd., which was established in 2008. They are headquartered in northern Finland but are working widely in Scandinavia and many European countries. The company operates with two divisions; Vumos Industrial Services which provides logistics, machine contracting, and environmental management services for the mining industry, and Vumos Green which focuses on landscaping, gardening, and environmental maintenance services. They proudly distribute Cypher products all over Europe to countries like in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy, Greece, and Poland.
As an entrepreneur, Elina wears many hats at the company where she oversees operations in Administration, Sales and Marketing, HR, and everything else in between. She says that her job can be very challenging with managing many customers and projects in different countries everyday, but that’s what keeps it interesting for her. Her goal has always been to see her team and her customers succeed. She gains a sense of accomplishment when her company is able to maintain long-term satisfied customers.
Elina notes that Cypher’s products give Vumos the possibility to give ecological solutions to their customers and make a positive impact on our environment, “we have a privilege to do what’s right” she says. She goes on to say that it’s been a pleasure to work with professionals who know what they are doing, who are innovative and enthusiastic, and always there to support you when needed. “Cypher has managed to create a unique team spirit with their own staff but also including their distributor network as a part of ‘the Cypher family’.”
Magda Fasole
Sistem Contruct (Romania)
Magda Fasole and her husband are proud distributors of Cypher Environmental products in Romania and have been one of our partners from the very beginning. They started importing Cypher products back in 2007 when they identified a need in the market for dust control and soil stabilization products. From then on the interest grew, particularly in the private sector, and they started to expand the business by working with engineers and researchers to identify the best solutions for their clients.
Magda focuses on business operations including writing contracts, calculating quotations, researching partnerships, and managing suppliers. She says that most of their projects are in rural areas of Romania, which are most often underdeveloped and disadvantaged. “It’s great to see how the entire community benefits from a long-lasting road construction and the advantages it brings to the area through better connectivity, job opportunities and overall increased quality of life,” explains Magda.
One of her strengths is relationship management and she feels most fulfilled when she completes a project through the successful coordination of different stakeholders. She says that Sistem Construct has learned the power of partnership from their Cypher family and are trying to have the same approach with their clients and suppliers, “Cypher has truly become a family for us and we have always had a great relationship with Todd and all the employees”.
We are so lucky to have many talented women amongst us who are leading Cypher Environmental initiatives with their drive for excellence and their passion towards building better roads.
Cypher core values state that people matter, and this includes all members of our team and extended distributor family regardless of age, gender, race, sexual orientation, or any other quality that makes each and everyone one of them special in their own way.
We are all in this together, and we ALL have an important role to play in bettering our planet, within our industry and yours.
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Cypher Environmental is a leading global environmental solution provider for dust control and road stabilization. With ESG (Environmental Social Governance) and CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) principles at the core of every decision we make, we proudly boast the tag line, “Always do what’s right.”
To learn more & become a distributor, please contact us here or reach us at: (877) 776-1585 // sales@cypherenvironmental.com // cypherenvironmental.com