My name is Tamara Morytko, or Tammi to most, and I’m President of the Pump Division at Flowserve Corporation. I’ll try to describe what a typical day looks like for me, but one of my favorite things about working at Flowserve is that each day is pretty unique. Even though it can make my schedule or day-to-day planning difficult sometimes, it’s one of the things that excites me and continues to raise the bar for me on a professional and personal level.

The one constant for me every day is communication. As a leader, it’s important to me to foster a culture where people feel trusted, confident in speaking up, and comfortable coming into work each day being their most authentic selves. One way I try to foster this is through frequent touch points to hear from our employees and open dialogue. Not just with my direct team members, but also with our Sales and Commercial Operations teams, Marketing, Finance, Operations and my peers on Flowserve’s Executive Leadership Team. In my experience over the years, I’ve been able to witness firsthand how frequent and deep communication can strengthen relationships, build trust and ultimately help us come together to deliver on a shared goal. Whether it’s sharing wins with our CEO, answering questions from a customer on an upcoming project, or catching up with a team member on what they did over the weekend – most of my time is spent catching up with someone.

Tammi with her husband and three sons.

While my current role is pretty demanding, I’m lucky enough to be in a position where I can focus more of my time on my career than in the past. I have three sons (my youngest just left for college) and a husband, and throughout my career, I’ve worked to help drive balance between my family life and my professional life. Just like so many other parents experience, juggling the activities of three children can be a job alone. Between scheduling appointments and shuffling kids between school and sports, finding the right work/life balance can be a real challenge. There were times earlier in my career that I had to take a step back from my professional goals so I could focus on my family. I know it can be difficult to hit pause on career momentum – but I found that it was in those times when I could spend more time on my family and then refocus my time back to my career that I would feel even more energized or open to new possibilities. In fact, the three years I moved out of the executive ranks in large public companies to focus on my youngest in his teen years cumulated into some of the best learning experiences I have had. As I would later reflect, those experiences positioned me to be a more thoughtful listener and more balanced in my responses to stressful situations. We hear a lot about work/life balance, but honestly, there’s no precise balance between the two. Our professional and personal lives are always happening simultaneously, and there will undoubtedly be times we have to focus on one more than the other. For me, I think about the journey – I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for the mix of both, sometimes hitting pause on my short-term goals to take sidesteps in one area while I focus on the other in hopes of achieving my long-term goals both at work and with my family. Today, being an empty nester, my husband and I split time between Dallas, Texas, where Flowserve is headquartered, and Connecticut, which is my home base and where my children have settled down. When I’m in Dallas I get to immerse in my work and when I go back to Connecticut on weekends when not travelling to our customers and sites, I get to spend more quality time with my husband and family.

Tammi with Flowserve associates during a site visit in India.

Finally, where I can, I try to make time for my own personal growth and development. I know I don’t have all of the answers and as a lifelong learner I strive to be challenged every day. Like so many, the past two years have been like no other. From keeping our teams safe during the pandemic and adjusting to a more remote environment to witnessing global supply chain and labor shortages, there has been a lot to learn about navigating these challenges and helping our teams through the volatility. One of my best sources of personal growth is through mentorship. I have a number of mentors that I look to for support and guidance. These include leaders within the industry, other women and past colleagues, and these relationships have had a profound impact on who I am today. Similarly, I am always happy to be a mentor to someone else. Each of us has a unique story and career journey. When we share our stories or experiences, I believe it can help expand our own perspectives and challenge our approach to future situations.

Since joining Flowserve in September 2020, the global business environment has tested me like never before, I’ve met some of the most amazing people, and I’ve learned so much. As we continue on our journey to grow our business and I get to spend more time with team members as the world continues to open up, I am incredibly excited for all of the possibilities that lie ahead.