Employee Spotlight: Kloeckner Welcomes Livia Candido Martins

At 16, Livia was already working. Her parents had their own business in Fortaleza, Brazil – where Livia was born and raised. She grew up the daughter of achievement-oriented entrepreneurs who cared deeply for their work. They modeled an aim for the stars mentality.

It would have been easy for Livia to stay in Brazil and continue working in the family business, but she chose instead to leave the nest, create her own adventure, and see what she could make of herself.

“In the most complex, hard path I see fun,” describes Livia, “It’s just part of who I am. I’m crazy about puzzles and that’s what motivates me.”

So, it’s by way of puzzle after puzzle—in the form of five countries, five languages, and three master’s degrees—that Livia arrives at Kloeckner Metals as the new Product Manager of Kloeckner Direct, our e-commerce platform.

Product Manager of Kloeckner Direct

Livia is best positioned to overcome ecommerce challenges for Kloeckner Metals in large part because she understands the value of difference and diversity. Her unique professional background in International Law, and her familiarity with nuanced differences among Brazilian, Spanish, French, German, and U.S. cultures, provides the foundation for a deep appreciation for the countless ways there are to approach and resolve problems.

Working in Digital Innovations, Livia’s role relies on one’s ability to navigate emergent technologies in an ecosystem of wide-ranging needs. Adopting customer centric digital strategies that unify Kloeckner’s Sales team is an exciting opportunity.

“In the world of tech,” Livia explains, “digital tools are necessary to add value both to our customers and our sales team. There’s innovation and creating value that’s required.”

Solutions in the Eyes of a Can-Doer

Consider first, that Kloeckner specializes in a breadth of inventory and fabrication services. Our customers span disparate industries from automotive to heavy equipment to shipbuilding. Then, consider the reality that it takes time to roll out new digital tools and for users to comfortably adopt them. In this land of managing a behemoth digital platform, there’s quite a bit to puzzle through.

So, how will Livia fit all the pieces together?

First, let’s underscore that Livia’s go-to orientation and approach to life is a can-do attitude. For example, when I asked Livia if she had undergone a change that she once thought impossible, she replied, “Impossible? I wouldn’t say impossible.”

(Fact: there is no “impossible” in the eyes of a can-doer.)

There have, however, been moments through which Livia has struggled. Take pursuing her MBA at J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University (GSU) despite still building up her English skills. At first, Livia stumbled and her GPA suffered.

Eventually, after overcoming the language barrier and raising her GPA a little each semester, GSU invited her to represent them on a team against 29 other U.S. universities in the KeyBank Minority Case Competition. Livia and her teammates analyzed, diagnosed, and recommended a strategy for digital transformation and presented it to company executives. They outcompeted the other universities with creative, precise, and tangible solutions to win the competition. (You can read more about her participation and success in this and other programs at GSU on Robinson’s blog.)

“What gave me an edge,” Livia makes clear, “is the experience I brought from different countries, industries, and a can-do attitude.”

Why Kloeckner?

Upon graduating with her MBA in December of 2020, Livia prioritized working in a role that allowed her to interact directly with clients for a company that respected difference and valued diversity. That current members of Kloeckner’s team speak happily about their experience excited her. And, there’s a can-do culture that invests in employee growth.

As someone who was raised to witness how much can be achieved if only you just forget to tell people it’s impossible, Livia saw these as positive indicators that Kloeckner delivers the cutting-edge creative solutions she aspires being part of.