June Employee Recognition: Rui Correia

I am nominating Rui Correia for taking the lead and working hard during the move into our new warehouse facility.

Philip Nagler

Q: What do you do at Natech?

I oversee all shipping and receiving, material flow to production, and inventory control at Natech. I’ve grown more into a managerial role recently, and am in charge of the warehouse team. It’s been challenging and I’m always learning as I go, but it’s a very fulfilling feeling to manage a team, have trust in them, and see results.

Q: How did you start your career in manufacturing?

By accident, really. I graduated college with my Secondary Education degree because it was my intention to become a teacher. At the time, teaching jobs were hard to find. I landed a job at Natech and I really enjoyed it. One year turned into two, into three, and then a decade went by. I enjoyed it because the skills I gained in school, like building personal relationships, learning as I go, and teaching others, translate into my job at Natech.

Q: What’s the most useful thing you’ve learned at Natech?

In my early days, I was always stressed about getting everything 100% correct the first time. I’ve learned that I don’t necessarily have to look for the correct way of doing something. I look for the effort put into something and dedication to making a good output.

Q: What’s something most people don’t know about you? 

I’m an immigrant from Portugal and came to the U.S. when I was 11. Staying close to and teaching my kids about Portuguese culture is important to me. I still have my close family in Portugal, so we try to travel there as much as we can. I have a large family and my wife has a large family. Whenever we travel there, we spend time on the lovely beaches and eat five to six meals a day because everybody loves to feed us.

Q: What do you like to do in your free time? 

I like to watch movies. I’m an avid cynophile. In an alternate universe, I would either be in Hollywood making movies or be a film critique. If I had to pick a favorite movie, it would be Citizen Kane. One of the best things about it is that it was made by a young director who wasn’t afraid to think outside the box and break rules, in terms of cinematography and storytelling.

Q: What’s one thing you can’t live without? 

It’s cheesy, but my family. I can’t live without them. We have a very silly household. We love to play pretend games, like Knights and Dragons and Cowboys and Indians. There’s always a lot of pretending and silliness.

Q: What’s your favorite part about working at Natech?

Natech shares two important values in my life, which are continual improvement and learning.

The recent project of moving from one facility to another really pushed my boundaries and pushed me outside of my comfort zone. I’ve learned more about project management and managing people. It was extremely challenging, but it was a great learning experience to lead a project and see it through.

Rui is one of the unsung heroes of Natech. I can’t imagine the team without him. He makes Natech a holistic, well-rounded place. Even when there’s so much to do, he makes sure everything gets done and it’s still fun.

Dan Duminuco

Q: What are your favorite Natech memories?

I have a special memory, it was a very quiet moment. It’s when Gerd Nagler, the founder of the company, was here. He would stroll through the warehouse, look around the finished products that were going to be shipped out, and say, “Hey, Rui baby, we gonna ship anything today?” If I said we weren’t shipping, he would be annoyed but if I said we were shipping, he would walk away happy.

Q: What personal goals do you want to achieve in the next 5 years?

Recently, I got into managing operations and people. I look forward to learning more and improving my managerial skills.

Q: What are your goals for Natech in the next few years?

I have no doubts the company is going to continuously grow. My goal is to make sure the warehouse grows with the company. I want to help Natech bring in more technology to help warehouse operations. It’s our goal to make sure our clients get the great products we make, which means warehouse operations always have to look to improve, aim for efficiency, and find ways to make things faster.

Q: What motivates you?

Gaining knowledge and fostering relationships. I’m motivated by continuous improvement and learning, both professionally and personally. And I’m motivated by helping others. Since I started as a teacher, the need to learn and teach is embedded in me. I’m happy to both acquire and give out as much knowledge as I can.

I’m motivated by relationships. My grandpa would always say, “Money is a necessity, but it’s cold. People are warm.” I’m interested in those relationships that allow me to see the warmth in people, professionally with coworkers and personally with my family.

Q: What are three traits that define you? 

1. Honest
2. Hard-working
3. Kind

Related Resources