Practices and Attitudes that Contribute to a Healthy, Fulfilling Work Life Integration

Mayra is the Human Resource Director for Peterbilt at Denton, TX. Mayra has a bachelor’s degree in accounting, an MBA and a M. Psych. from CETYS University. In her role, Mayra is responsible for Human Resources in the areas of Talent Management, Engagement, Rewards, Retention, Training, Development and Organizational Effectiveness for Peterbilt and PACCAR Engine Company. Mayra joined Kenworth Mexicana in 1996 as an accountant and held positions of Increasing responsibility in finance and accounting, advancing to Consolidations Manager and Internal Control Manager. Mayra moved to Human Resources in 2002 where she held the positions of Personnel Manager, HR Manager, Plant HR Manager and HR Director for PACCAR Mexico before joining Peterbilt. Mayra has been an active participant of Diversity Councils, PBWIN, and the PACCAR’s Women Association (PWA).

In her free time Mayra likes to spent time with her family, her husband Roberto, her daughter Mayra Fernanda and his son Roberto Antonio.

Karissa Anderson is a Vehicle Integration Validation Engineer specializing in control systems of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles at PACCAR Technical Center (PTC) out of Mount Vernon, WA.

Starting her career with PACCAR straight out of college, Karissa joined PTC in 2022 after earning her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering (BSME) from the University of Washington and Associate of Arts (AA) from Spokane Falls Community College. Her current role involves completing system acceptance testing to ensure PACCAR trucks meet the expectations of valued customers and leading the validation winter field test in which trucks are tested in the extreme conditions of northern Canada. Since joining PTC, Karissa has participated in college outreach events, is a member of the PTC Diversity Council, and is part of the PACCAR Women's Association (PWA) mentoring program to learn from experienced employees throughout the company.

Outside of work, Karissa likes to spend her weekends visiting art fairs, seasonal festivals, and car shows, or staying home to craft, cook, or watch movies with her husband and two cats. She is a firm believer that time spent with loved ones is time well spent.

Michelle Johnston is the North American Technical Project Manager for Global Zero Emission Vehicles for Peterbilt Motors, a PACCAR Company. She began her engineering career in 2001with the Boeing Company as a designer of future 747 interiors. Michelle transitioned into multiple structural design roles, supporting various programs. The highlight of her time at Boeing, was leading the 747 Dreamlifter design team through concept to final definition of the new frame structure of the airplane.

After 7 successful years working, Michelle made the hard decision to leave her job behind to become a trailing Expat spouse. Over the course of eight years, Michelle and her family moved to several international locations including, Sweden, Singapore, and South Korea. In 2015, her family re-located the final time to Frisco, Texas where she then became a certified personal trainer and built her own business out of her home garage. It was the perfect solution and balance for a busy family of 3 young boys and a husband who travelled weekly.

With a desire to re-launch her engineering career, Michelle connected with Peterbilt Motors at the 2022 Society of Women’s Engineering Conference. In January of 2023, she hired into the Advanced Manufacturing Engineering group, specific to battery electric vehicles and recently became the North American Technical Project Manager for the Global Zero Emission Vehicles program. Even after a 14-year career break, she was able to seamlessly find a role that valued her life skills in addition to her technical skills.

Michelle graduated from Seattle University with Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. She loves everything outdoors, UTV riding, weightlifting, cooking/baking, traveling, family and pets.

Danny Siem is a Fuel Tax Manager at PACCAR Leasing (PacLease), a division of PACCAR, overseeing a team of professionals that supports PacLease’s franchise network in navigating the world of fuel tax reporting and state and IFTA filings. PacTax, one of PacLease’s customized solution value-add offerings, is a fuel tax management service that saves fleets time and money while ensuring they stay in compliance.

In 2019, Danny joined PACCAR as a Corporate Recruiter, promoting diversity of hires throughout the company. As an avid supporter for promoting the inclusion of women in the transportation industry, Danny has been actively involved with Women In Trucking since 2021.

Danny holds a bachelor’s degree in international business from Seattle University. Upon graduation, he worked in a variety of fields, including transportation, B2B sales, and aviation.”

Sherry Sheline is a IT Manager at Dynacraft, a division of PACCAR, overseeing a team of IT professionals that support Applications, Infrastructure, Servers, and Desktop Supports for both facilities (McKinney, Texas and Louisville, KY).

In 1996, Sherry joined PACCAR as a Lease Accountant for PacLease, working with dealers to lease trucks for their fleets. After holding various roles within Accounting and Purchasing, she transitioned to IT where she has held various position of increasing responsibility. She is one of a few that has worked across multiple divisions (Kenworth, Peterbilt, Engine Company, IT Department, and Dyancraft). While working Sherry earned her Bachelor of Business Administration and Master’s in Project Management degrees.

Since joining Dynacraft in 2021, she became the Champion Diversity & Inclusion at Dynacraft. She created teams to support the initiatives and participates as much as possible. She also kicked of this year two main groups: Veteran’s and PACCAR Women’s Association. She is part of the PWA Outreach team which has allowed her to participate across PACCAR and learn from others.

Deb Symmons is the Division HR Director for the Kenworth Truck Company. Based in Kirkland, Washington, she has responsibility for all aspects of human resources for over 4,000 Kenworth employees in North America. 

Deb joined PACCAR 10 years ago following time with both Microsoft and in the mechanical construction industry. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications and completed her Master’s Degree in Organizational Management while working full time and enjoying a young family. She began her career with PACCAR as the HR Manager with Dynacraft, moved to PACCAR corporate and enjoyed 2.5 years as the Director of Learning and Leadership Development and then happily accepted her dream job as the HR Director for Kenworth.

Outside of work, Deb likes to spend time with her family and especially, her six year old grandson. Deb and her husband love to travel and they plan at least one big extended family vacation every year. Weekly family dinners, watching British mystery shows, spending time outdoors and building their retirement home take up the remainder of their free time together!