At Caterpillar, the Right Opportunities — and the Right People — Drive Professional Success

Chrissy Metz believes that she grew up in the “best of both worlds” — on a farm in the south suburbs of Chicago, where dirt bike rides with her younger brothers were just as common as museum trips into the city. Little did she know back then that her city-girl-meets-rural-life story would set the perfect stage for a long, enriching career at Caterpillar, the company known for its “world-famous yellow iron,” which drives both construction and mining projects across the globe. 

Metz has had countless roles throughout the almost 19 years she has worked at the company and currently holds the title of marketing activation manager for the global marketing and brand team. She manages a team that promotes the Cat® brand, where she focuses on changing perceptions and driving affinity through various channels, including editorial, digital marketing and social media. 

Since joining the company in the marketing rotation program in 2006, Metz has learned — and experienced — more than she could have imagined. Not only has the company enabled her to live in different cities across North America and hold a wide range of roles but it also introduced her to her future husband, whom she met in her program. 

“Caterpillar is a massive part of my overall life story,” Metz said. “I’m truly grateful for all the opportunities I have had with this company.”

Opportunity defines employees’ experiences at Caterpillar, enabling professionals at every level to reach the next stage of their career. This immediately became clear to Lead Application Security Engineer Gavin Stec, who had the chance to take on an increasing number of leadership responsibilities on the security assurance testing team shortly after joining the company nearly two years ago. 

Stec, who works within the company’s digital arm, Cat Digital, has learned how to navigate the nuances of working with globally distributed teams while refining his technical skill set and receiving unwavering support from others, giving way to an unprecedented growth journey. 

“I feel that I’ve been able to grow professionally at Cat in a way I couldn’t in my previous roles,” he said. 

All of these experiences have enabled Metz and Stec to transform their professional lives, setting them both on a path toward continued success. And while each of them may have different career goals, both are empowered equally by access to the right opportunities — and the right people. 

“When asked why I’ve been with Caterpillar for almost 19 years, my first answer is always the people,” Metz shared. “It is all because of the relationships and people at this company.”

Describe the professional/academic experiences you had before joining Caterpillar. 

Metz: I went to school at Illinois Wesleyan University in central Illinois. I attended all the IWU job fairs and also decided to attend the Illinois State University job fair, where I was first introduced to Caterpillar. The recruiter pulled me aside and discussed the marketing training program and how I’d be a great fit. I loved hearing about the global company and all the vast opportunities in front of me. I completed all the job interview requirements and received a job offer during my senior year. I officially joined Caterpillar in the fall of 2006 after taking the summer off to travel and enjoy time with family and friends.

Stec: Prior to joining Cat Digital, I worked in application security at a mid-sized software company. I initially began as an intern during my junior year of college and, upon my graduation in 2021, I began a full-time role as an application security engineer. Throughout my two years at that company, I worked on various security initiatives, including web pentesting, static application security testing/software composition analysis implementation and helping developers write secure code — tasks which are quite similar to my current responsibilities at Cat Digital. 

Prior to my internship, I also interned in software development with multinational manufacturing company Bosch during my sophomore year of college. I attended DePaul University, where I studied cybersecurity. During my time at DePaul, I competed in various cybersecurity competitions, even placing second nationally at the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition with my team of fellow students. This was the best placing DePaul — or any Illinois institution — had ever secured in the competition before or since.

Tell us more about your journey at Caterpillar so far. What role did you have initially, and what were those early experiences like?

Metz: I joined Caterpillar in September 2006 in the marketing training program. I was in the third class of 2006, so I was in MTC063. This program started with three months of Caterpillar indoctrination: visiting factories, learning about all of the different products and solutions, and traveling to other facilities and networking. After three months with my class of 26 people, we entered our respective paths for the program. I had one year in Decatur, Illinois, doing marketing for wheel tractor-scrapers, followed by one year back in Peoria, Illinois, learning about different industries and products, and a four-month dealer rotation in Iowa. 

In March 2009, I went out as a marketing field representative for Caterpillar and moved to Vancouver, British Columbia. I should also state that I met my husband in MTC063, too. We’ve been married for 17 years and have three amazing daughters. We spent two years in Vancouver and then moved to Toronto, Ontario, for our second field rep assignments. As part of MTC, your goal is to learn and train to be field reps working with Caterpillar and dealers in a respective territory. We both loved working with the dealers, which prepared me for professional success.

In your first few months, what impression did you get of Caterpillar’s potential to further your career?

Metz: I interned at another company throughout college, and thought that was where I’d start my career after graduating. At that fateful job fair at ISU, I already recognized the vast career potential at Caterpillar, and I knew that was where I wanted to be. Caterpillar is a global company where someone can have many different roles and experiences under the same umbrella. I remember meeting Caterpillar employees who were passionate about their work, opportunities and the people they worked with in my first year on the job. My path was set by experiencing a company investing in its people and having employees echo the sentiment about being valued and loving what they do. If I wanted to have a long-term career at Caterpillar, I knew I could and that it would be the best decision for me both personally and professionally.

Stec: I learned quite quickly that Cat Digital was going to give me opportunities to succeed and grow in my career. Not long after joining, I was empowered to take on more and more leadership duties with the security assurance testing team. As I took on these new opportunities, I was also often recognized and applauded by my leaders in a way that motivated me. I think the combination of frequent and visible opportunities to succeed as well as the understanding and rewarding leadership style of my supervisors gave me a strong impression of Cat Digital’s potential for furthering my career, both in technical capability and in title.

“I learned quite quickly that Cat Digital was going to give me opportunities to succeed and grow in my career.”

Since joining Caterpillar, how have you grown professionally?

Metz: I have grown so much at Caterpillar. I am a people-focused and data-driven leader with a strong track record of managing a team effectively and innovating successful marketing programs and initiatives. I have three main projects that connect to this growth. First, my role as team lead within job site solutions taught me to be a clear, concise and compelling storyteller. My leader at the time taught me how to think outside of the box and lean into what your audience cares about. This propelled me to my first leadership role, where I had the opportunity to innovate our digital marketing strategy and efforts at the Caterpillar BCP division. I learned how to test and learn with projects and how to motivate and inspire the team. We delivered one project valued by leadership so much that it cemented much of the group’s future work; it led to 132 percent year-over-year lead generation growth for that year. Lastly, I’ve had the opportunity to champion initiatives close to my heart, such as the inaugural Celebrating Women in Construction event in 2024. Working with many talented, passionate and capable people, we have executed large trade shows and events over the years that received internal accolades and public recognition.

Stec: Cat Digital is a highly globalized organization and, as a result, I’ve been given the opportunity to work with and lead various international teams. The ability to effectively communicate and collaborate with international teams is non-negotiable in modern business. On a daily basis, I work with peers around the globe from various regions, cultures and native languages, and I believe this continuous experience has had a profound impact on my ability not only to succeed with a global team but also to understand and appreciate distinct global values and customs.

How have these experiences positively impacted you on a personal level?

Metz: I have worked alongside diverse, talented individuals from various backgrounds and cultures. This environment fostered collaboration and creativity, allowing us to share unique perspectives and ideas. The way my colleagues approached challenges with different viewpoints truly motivated me to take on a leadership role. I realized that embracing diversity strengthens a team and drives innovation. These relationships I’ve fostered at work continue to motivate me and have also given way to enriching and fun experiences. This has also fueled my desire to be a compassionate spouse and parent. When people feel heard and seen, genuine connection happens. I take this to heart both at home and at work.

“I have worked alongside diverse, talented individuals from various backgrounds and cultures.”

Stec: Working with global teams has inspired me to explore other cultures. Since joining Cat Digital, I’ve personally traveled throughout East and South Asia as well as Africa, often visiting regions that offer quite different perspectives than my own. I’ve found this has helped me personally learn about the world while also developing a closer camaraderie with my global teammates who are often quite excited to hear about my direct experiences of their local customs, sports and events.

Which people do you credit with helping you grow at Caterpillar?

Metz: I have had a couple of phenomenal leaders at Caterpillar. These leaders have challenged me to think differently and fueled my drive to learn. They trust me to move the team forward and empower me to make decisions. One of those leaders is Sam Melchiori. She is the one who helped me master the craft of storytelling. We did so many whiteboarding exercises where her challenge was to ask, “How do we break the norm, how do we make this more exciting and relevant to customers, and how do we sharpen the message?” These items are integral to my work with the teams I’ve had the privilege to lead. When a leader gives you license to challenge the mold all while embracing the customer’s mindset, you can draw outside the lines. She stretched my comfort zone, and I’m still reaping the benefits today.

Stec: I’d have to credit Ryan Stalets, a principal application security engineer from my team, for continually mentoring and encouraging me. He always brings a pragmatic and highly technical mindset to any discussion and has always generously provided this technical guidance whenever I need it. I’d say he also encourages and reinforces my own technical skills, making me more confident and decisive in my own decisions. I cannot stress the value of a senior mentor like Ryan enough.

What lessons, pieces of advice and experiences have had the greatest impact on your professional growth journey?

Stec: Career growth can sometimes look like a sequence of lucky breaks. For example, I happened to be placed at the helm of the newly created e-commerce application security team early in my time with Cat Digital due to a fortunately timed reorganization. However, I’ve also often been told the admittedly cliché phrase, “luck is where opportunity meets preparation.” I think this more aptly describes the foundations of career growth. By balancing the technical skills required of a job with intentional and sincere interpersonal skills, I believe anyone would find that they’re often “lucky” — lucky in being given that new responsibility or highly visible project when it comes up, lucky in receiving that promotion over other qualified candidates or lucky in having a supervisor that trusts your autonomy and respects your time. 

As cliché as it is, I’ve made it a point in my career to be prepared in case of any opportunity. That preparation involves staying up to date technically, being diligent and accurate with every assignment and being purposeful and cordial with every communication. And with that preparation, I’ve found that I’ve had a whole lot of luck when career opportunities arise.