A Quality Career

Ask people around ADS what they do for a living and you’re likely to hear titles like “Inside Sales,” “Business Development Manager” or “Buyer.”

Kim Hulin’s answer always sounds a little different.

“Quality,” she says. “That’s what I do. It’s my forte. I’m very heavily into quality.”

And lucky for us. As the ADS Director of Corporate Quality, Kim heads up all things Quality. Her unique specialization follows 38 years in the manufacturing industry, where she tended to all the little details and performance audits that helped her employers perform better. Now just two years into her role at ADS, Kim’s work is already opening new doors for the company.

To see it, look no further than ADS’ recent AS9100 certification – the top certification available for companies working in the aerospace industry. Awarded in February, the AS9100 certification expands ADS’ ability to compete for valuable aerospace contracts that were previously unavailable. Of the five main competitors in the category, ADS is now the only one to hold an AS9100 certification.

“AS9100 is the next level for ADS,” Kim says.

Earning it wasn’t easy. The application took eight months of meticulous preparation to perfect ADS’ systems and ensure that we met the certification’s rigorous standards.

“We had to look at our processes, product safety, suppliers, everything – our entire quality system had to be compliant,” Kim says.

And thanks to Kim, it was. She orchestrated the entire process, supported by the work of companywide cross-functional groups who worked together to meet the standards and make our case for certification.

“Management and leadership commitment is so important to efforts like this, and here they’re so happy to help,” she says.

In fact, the trust and support she receives are some of the things she loves most about working at ADS. Surprisingly, this is her first foray into government contracting, after a career spent entirely in a manufacturing environment.

She first heard about the job from a former co-worker, Tom Hazelbaker, who was working at ADS. He thought she’d be a great fit. She interviewed and got the job.

“ADS is the pinnacle for me. It’s my dream job and is just really rewarding,” she said. “The work at ADS really matters, and the things they do for employees here just blows my mind.”

What’s next? More of the same – helping ADS focus on quality performance and continual improvement of the Quality Management System that can help the company grow and prosper.

“People laugh at me because I love audits,” she says. “You want to make sure you’re doing things right and that benefits the company, customers, and the supply base. That’s what I do.”

And she does it so well. We’re so thrilled to have you aboard, Kim. Thanks for all the “quality” work.