Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity

Kary Schaefer is the General Manager of Marketing and Strategy for Freightliner and Detroit Brands, as well as overall vehicle platform strategy at Daimler Trucks North America.  Schaefer joined Daimler Trucks North America in 1995 after holding engineering positions at Pacific Testing Laboratories and Boeing Aerospace in Seattle, Washington. During her career at Daimler Trucks, Kary has filled the roles of design engineer, project planning engineer, engineering project manager, director of engineering services and chief engineer. Between 2012 and 2015, she led an engineering group within United Technology Corporation responsible for the development of autonomous flight controls and stabilized camera systems used in commercial unmanned aerial vehicles.

In late 2015, she returned to Daimler Trucks as the General Manager of Marketing and Strategy for Freightliner and Detroit Brands.  In this role, she is responsible for market analysis, product planning, brand management, and marketing operations. She leads the organization in the creation and execution of product roadmaps from evaluation of customer needs and market trends to early business case development to new product launch and on-going product management.

Kary earned her Associate in Arts & Engineering Science degree from Bellevue Collegeand her Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Washington State University.

Domenica Farmer has 30+ years of experience, entrepreneurship, and driving execution in the comprehensive waste and environmental services industry. As area vice president of WM, Farmer is responsible for all profit and loss aspects of the company’s operations in Texas and Oklahoma to include collections, disposal, recycling, and landfill. Farmer is skilled in Operations Management, Sales, Sustainable Business and Environmental Awareness. She has a strong passion relative to mentoring others, ensuring inclusivity, and empowering people to be their best self.

She began her career with WM in April 1992 in sales and transitioned into the organization’s operations through holding a variety of senior level positions.

Farmer is fluent in Italian and speaks conversational Spanish. She received her MBA and bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of West Florida. Farmer has served as the chairman of the board for the Niceville-Valparaiso Chamber of Commerce and is currently serving as a board member of Columbia Southern University. She was recently appointed as a board of director to the Women In Trucking (WIT) Association and continues to educate groups on benefits of recycling and creating sustainable solutions.

Ingrid Brown is from Boone, NC/Mountain City, TN, and lives by the quote, "nothing in life is simple, it takes hard work and, in the end, it's a positive journey to success.” Brown’s four-decade career has been diverse as she has held many roles such as independent owner-operator, company driver, CEO, safety and operations manager.

As the new professional driver/driver engagement & director of marketing at WLA, Inc. Trucking in Mount Airy, NC, Brown is diversifying and extending her experience for others. Beginning October 2023, WLA, Inc. Trucking will present “Life on 18 Wheels,” a video and audio podcast to work with drivers and carriers to bridge gaps in the industry. Brown will also be mentoring women in the transportation industry and women who are interested in entering the transportation industry through “Life on 18 Wheels.”

Brown has dedicated her driving career toward CMV Safety and the safety of the general motoring public and continues to work directly with FMCSA in D.C. for safer highways. In 2019, Brown was chosen as FMCSA's CMV Voice of Safety Our Roads, Our Safety campaign. Brown can be seen and heard on billboards, television commercials, SiriusXM, and major media as the FMCSA Safety Advocate. Additionally, Brown was a speaker in the 2020 FMCSA Trucking Safety Summit. In 2015, she was selected for the NASTC America’s Road Team and the NASTC Woman Driver of the Year.

In 2018, Brown was a TA/Petro Citizen Driver Honoree and the Oklahoma City Petro was rebranded as the Ingrid R. Brown OKC PETRO. In 2021, she was named to the St. Christopher’s Fund Driver Council and one of 21 on the 50th Anniversary Wall of Fame of the Mid-America Trucking Show.

Brown continues to be an advocate for driver awareness and safety through her involvement within the industry and can be seen and heard in numerous major magazines, radio, TV news specials, social media, podcasts, and speaking engagements.

In March 2019, she was on the cover of USA TODAY and in the feature video of Females in Trucking. Brown is a charter member of Women in Trucking and a 2015 Inaugural WIT Image Team member still serving today.