Today Heather is lead color and trim designer for Buick. This week, the luxury small crossover Buick Encore was introduced as the newest member of the growing Buick lineup.

Heather stayed close to home when she went to college at Lawrence Technological University, and she remained in the area when she got her first job after college with GM Design. In the eight years since then, she’s been collaborating with and visiting GM Design studios around the globe as she’s worked on some of Buick’s hottest models.

Heather points out the saddle-and-cocoa color combination with accent stitching on the seat.

Heather says she started working on the Encore almost two years ago. It’s a typical part of her job that she works on future vehicles, and she also works around the world. She explains “The color and trim (group) works collaboratively with our global counterparts. We look at the future trends in fashion, interior design, architecture, and we come up with several ideas and proposals of color combinations, variance of hue, saturation of colors that we explore.”

Heather mentions the international aspect of her job is one of the best parts of working for GM Design. “I love working on global programs and working very closely with every region. I think it’s very exciting for us seeing the different cultures, working with the different cultures and sometimes traveling over there, getting to meet face to face with them and seeing how they live, how their culture is.”

Heather speaks from a design viewpoint when she says, ““Warm expressive wood does really well for us in the Buick.” And she speaks from a car fan viewpoint when you ask her how she wants the new Buick owner to react. She says, “As the customer opens the door, they should say, ‘Wow! I want to get in that vehicle.’ And when they get in, they should have a feeling of luxury and sophistication.”

The saddle-and-cocoa color combination shown on the Encore at the NAIAS is right in line with the latest fashion trends, but Heather is already thinking ahead to the next stage. She says, “Color is one of the easiest things to change out and refresh for future models. We can change that out pretty quickly and still keep up with the fashion industry.” But the scope of the auto industry means the color and trim team needs to be constantly looking to the future. She states, “Our job is critical in determining what those future color positions and spaces are going to be, working several years out. It’s very important for us to understand where those color placements are going.”

The Detroit native continues to tap sources around the globe to predict future trends for Buick.

She recently earned her master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology and began working at the GM Fuel Cell Lab this summer. She suspected she’d end up doing something automotive-related with her career because, “I always worked on cars with my dad when I was younger. I’d always been exposed to that hands-on aspect.” While developing more efficient ways to split molecules isn’t exactly the same as getting grease under her fingernails, it does keep her actively involved in the cutting-edge of the transportation industry.

Jackie shows us a very thin fuel cell membrane made from polymer film. It helps create electricity that powers vehicles.

Jackie walked us through a couple of the test labs at the Fuel Cell facility and talked about some of the different types of testing that goes on there. GM has already put more than 2 million miles on its hydrogen-fueled vehicles during Project Driveway, but that doesn’t mean the technology is perfected. Jackie said, “There’s always room for material improvements, system improvements, component improvements. This entire facility is driven towards improving and producing that fuel cell vehicle.” She’s excited to be part of the team creating the next generation of personal transportation.

When we asked her if the products and technologies being tested in her lab were evolutionary or revolutionary she said, “It’s a combination of evolutionary and hopefully revolutionary. Every new idea has the potential to become revolutionary, but until it goes through a gamut of testing there’s no way to really know, which is why the test infrastructure is so important to this facility.”

At graduation Jackie received a number of offers, and accepted the position with GM. She said, “One of the things that really drew me to GM and drew me to this position and research facility is that, even through the tougher economic times that they went through, they really stayed true to their research and continued to contribute to all their research efforts; because as a company, they really do believe in this technology and they really want to see this technology take off and succeed.”

With smart, dedicated people like Jacqueline Sergi working on fuel cell technology, you can bet that it is going to succeed.

Check out the video below to get a look inside the labs that Jackie manages and hear how she feels her job reflects her humanitarian values.

A car is one of the most important tools for anyone trying to juggle careers and kids. As Kristin says, “They’re a basic necessity. They’re everything. Your car’s not working, everything falls apart.” Knowing the importance of cars to the Manic Mommies and their audience, Chevrolet established a relationship four years ago, including sponsoring the duo. Occasionally, Kristin or Erin will get an opportunity to drive a vehicle – like the Chevrolet Traverse – and they will then write a review covering their experience. Chevrolet is also a major sponsor of the annual “Manic Mommies Escape.”

The Manic Mommies arrive at the Dream Cruise in their Chevrolet Traverse

Chevrolet invited Erin and Kristin to come to Detroit for the Woodward Dream Cruise this summer, so that they could see first-hand the passion that people feel for the brand. The Mommies drove a Traverse on a road trip to the Motor City, and they used all the vehicle’s technologies to get them to their destination. Kristin owns a Chevrolet Equinox, so she felt comfortable in the Traverse, and served as Erin’s co-pilot on the drive from Rochester to the Detroit area. Kristin said, “I knew where everything was, and how we could use all the different features.” Among other features, they used OnStar navigation to provide directions, and the Bluetooth® phone feature to talk hands-free while they were on the road.

They arrived at the Dream Cruise route on a Thursday, just in time to ride in the Chevrolet Parade, which celebrated the brand’s 100^th anniversary. That parade started with flags being waved by NASCAR stars (and Chevrolet Volt owners) Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. Erin rode in a Volt during the parade, while Kristin was in the new Chevrolet Sonic with Orion Assembly Plant Manager Alicia Boler-Davis and Chevrolet Small Cars Marketing Director Margaret Brooks.

Kristin and Erin check out some classic Chevrolets at the Dream Cruise

The rest of the weekend was a whirlwind of activities, which included a tour of the OnStar Command Center, dinner with engineers and “Malibu Moms” Suzy Cody and Kara Gordon, a meet-up with local Detroit Manic Mommies, and a trip to the actual Dream Cruise event, where more than one million people showed up to see classic cars cruising on Woodward Avenue through the Detroit suburbs.

The Chevrolet relationship with the Manic Mommies continues this November, when the Manic Mommies Escape 2011 takes place in New Orleans. Chevy will provide complimentary round trip airport transfers for attendees flying into the Crescent City, and several Mommies will actually road-trip in Chevrolet vehicles to New Orleans, courtesy of Chevy. Chevrolet team members will join Erin and Kristin in several panels and podcasts. The weekend promises to be a great escape for Manic Mommies!  If you’re interested in joining Chevrolet and the Manic Mommies, there is still space available. You can register or obtain more information at Manic Mommies Escape 2011.

Chevrolet is glad to help make things a little less manic for mommies everywhere.

Audrey says, “I find Chevrolet to be very exciting.” She is a fan of the Tahoe and Suburban, and she says “Equinox is bringing people in the door that we haven’t seen in years.” But, she gets really fired up when the conversation turns to the Camaro. She said one of her dealers was so excited when the Camaro was announced that he took a $5,000 deposit on the car … even though it was years away from delivery. “I said, ‘You gotta give that back. You can’t keep $5,000,’” Audrey recalls. When the Camaro finally arrived Audrey raved, “The beauty of it, the quietness of it. You know when you’re sitting inside, you feel like you’re in a real race car. Even with a 6-cylinder. 304-horsepower? And now it’s going up to 312? And 30 miles to the gallon! And we’re going to kick Ford Mustang’s butt.”

She admits that her dealerships struggled and lost money in 2007 and 2008. But now she works with them on special promotions, accessorizing and financing to help them become profitable again, and it’s working. Making adjustments and changing how to approach things has helped her be successful and happy.

Two years ago, in the midst of the auto industry struggles, Audrey decided to give up smoking and she took up running. “I try to get in five miles 4 or 5 times a week, which hasn’t been happening lately, but I have been in two 10K races,” Audrey says.  The self-described Brooklyn girl also discovered another outlet. “Suddenly I’ve decided that I like gardening. I never thought that I did and now every Saturday and Sunday I’m outside. I have a vegetable garden and I just started an English garden.”

Taking on new challenges and not backing down from obstacles are the traits that have helped Audrey Higham find success and satisfaction.

Where did you work at GM?

I worked 6 years at the (Milford) Proving Ground and 17 at the (Warren) Tech Center. I was an electronic technician. We ran the electrical lab and worked on a lot of the components that are under the hood.

How did you get involved with restoring classic cars?
I started dating a man and ended up with two loves … that guy and classic cars.

My husband Ken and I have now been married for 6 years. When we started dating he was putting together a ’57 Chevy. After awhile he said, “You should get one.” Later he called me and said, “There’s a nice ‘57 Chevy truck on the board for you.” I used to drive an old Chevy pickup truck, so it was perfect.

What has the biggest challenge been in restoring your truck?

It’s hard to pick out a single-biggest challenge to getting it done. Time, money and finding specific parts are all tough. Actually it took me 5 years to find my bench seat. They make covers for bench seats. They don’t make bench seats. So I put an ad in Classic Chevy and ended getting it out in Milford. The company Cars, Inc. did the cover for the seat.

Also, when I got the truck there was no headliner. The interior dome light was two wires. It was a work truck and it needed a lot of work. Then I had to make decisions on how I wanted it to look. I took three rolls of film at the 2005 Autorama, all just looking at different types of flames before deciding how I wanted the flames on my truck to look.

How do you feel when you look at your truck?
I feel proud. I’m just very, very proud. I’ve always driven Chevrolets. I’ve always loved Chevys, and there’s nothing like the lines of the classic cars. If you’re a car person, it gets in your blood. You can’t help it. It’s almost an addiction. You hear the rumble and you get whiplash turning your head. What can I say? They’re part of your life. They should be part of your life. And it’s American made. I’m proud of it.

A couple of weeks ago I attended the fifth annual BlogHer conference in New York City with a small group of GM employees. BlogHer is a conference celebrating women in the blogosphere and their ever growing influence in social media. The conference grows with each passing year and attendance at this conference was over 2,500. This may seem like a small number compared to other conferences like South By Southwest or the Consumer Electronics show, but keep in mind that these are 2,500 of the most connected and engaged people in the country. Proof in point, Twitter crashed twice on the first day due to all the tweeting at BlogHer.

Chevrolet was a proud sponsor of the conference and I was happy to help staff the Cruze product booth. Freshly coming off the National Media Drive and still running on fumes, I wasn’t sure if I would have the energy to enjoy BlogHer. But it was awesome! I met some fabulous bloggers (Hi Paul and Lee Reyes-Fournier!), got to snap pictures with pseudo-celebrities (see the picture of me and honey bear above) and gained some great insights on cars from New Yorkers. 

For three days I chatted with numerous people about cars and lifestyles. The most interesting conversations I had were with city slickers who all shared two basic sentiments with me. One, owning a car is a luxury in a big city.  Two, if you do have money, the automotive make of choice is usually European. Now it would be easy to say that big urban markets don’t fit with GM and simply turn our attention elsewhere, but the reality is that there is a global trend towards rapid urbanization.  According to a Population Reference Bureau report, 81 percent of the inhabitants of developed countries will be urban dwellers by 2030. In the U.S. more than half of all Americans live within 50 miles of the major coasts, according to the Center for Environment and Population.  So herein lies the great challenge of the future for the domestic car industry, how will we penetrate the ever fickle and style-discriminating urban markets?

I’m not claiming to know the answer to this question and no doubt this will be a very difficult issue to tackle, but my instincts are telling me that the answer perhaps lies somewhere in branding. In terms of products, GM cars are better than they have ever been. So we’ve effectively closed the gap of quality and performance. Now that GM is sitting pretty in the performance and quality category with other impressive auto makers, how do we differentiate ourselves and win over those trend-setting urbanites? 

Last year one of my awesome professors at Northwestern, Frank Mulhern, said something that really stuck with me (see dad?!? I am paying attention in class! Your money isn’t really going to waste). Professor Mulhern said that in any mature classically competitive market, each supplier essentially has equal access to the same technology and resources as his/her competitors. Thus everyone’s prices and quality ends up being about the same! (Unless you’re Wal-Mart!) With equal quality and equal prices, how does one distinguish his products from somebody else’s? The answer is (drum roll please)…..branding!

But this whole branding thing didn’t really hit me until my last day in Manhattan when I had some down time and I decided to wander around the city. After a couple hours of hoofing it from downtown to uptown, I worked up an appetite. Being a firm believer in “when in Rome do as the Romans do”, I decided it was only appropriate that I quash my hunger with the quintessential New York summertime nosh… the hot dog! But where to go? The Smoke Joint? PDT? The ubiquitous Gray’s Papaya? The equally charming Papaya King? Let’s not forget Papaya Dog. Overwhelmed with options, I called up my foodie friend for advice. He said go to Gray’s Papaya. I asked him why. He said, “What’s more New York than Gray’s Papaya?” There it was; branding at its finest.  Gray’s Papaya had somehow beaten all its equally delicious rivals and become the top New York dog. 

Now I’m not equating cars to hot dogs, but metaphorically, how can GM cars become the Gray’s Papaya of the urban city market? It’s pretty obvious that it’s going to be a challenge because there is some stiff competition out there. But GM has a pretty awesome lineup of products, so at the very least we’re comin’ out swinging in the urban branding battle.

 Lucy Boulatnikov Wilke , senior project engineer 

Married to: Burkhardt (Burk for short) for almost two years
Listens to: Tons of audio books as she travels 25,000 miles/yr to visit Burk in Canada – mostly historical fiction
TV junkie: House, So You Think You Can Dance, Bones, Family Guy, South Park, Simpsons
Music junkie: Classical when she’s with Burk, pop when she’s alone
Hobbies: Loves spending time with friends and doing outdoor stuff like camping and hiking
Interesting fact: Leads GM Friends & Family Ski Club
Education: Has a BS in Industrial Engineering from the University at Buffalo (UB) and a Masters in Manufacturing Management & Leadership from Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)

As a fourteen year old, Lucy came to the U.S. from Ukraine and jumped feet first into all things math related. She tutored math and was one of the team leads of her high school math team that competed against other Rochester, NY high schools.

So it’s not surprising that as an engineer, following in her mother’s footsteps, Lucy runs mathematical equations in her mind (silly stuff as she calls it), as she travels 4.5 hours to see her husband who is completing his Chemistry PhD in Ottawa, Canada. She tries to figure out if she increases her speed by one mile per hour, how much faster she will get there. What takes you by surprise are her funny sayings.

“Burk and I were married on the 4^th of July and on the Save-the-Dates I wrote: “…we are losing our independence to each other on Independence Day!” What can I say; I love to be corny.”

Lucy & Burk

Lucy is a manufacturing engineer who works with Design Engineering, Operations and Quality functions to set up processes to build and test the next generation of fuel cells. “You have to plan not just for the short term – that’s easy – but for the long term when we go into the actual fuel cell vehicle production.”

She came to GM six years ago when a manager of the Honeoye Falls, NY Fuel Cell facility who was trying to woo her away from a job she loved in Buffalo, NY, asked her if she wanted to work at a job that would change the world. “Corny, but Gary totally had me at “change the world.”

When she started at Honeoye Falls, the production floor was pretty empty. She had the opportunity to plan for the building of the first 120 Chevy Equinox Fuel Cell vehicles that would be used in the largest test marketing program for a fuel cell vehicle of any manufacturer. “These vehicles were going to be driven by regular drivers and had to meet all the stringent safety and quality metrics of any other Chevy vehicle. There was a lot of calculating and running of many algorithms to learn what to expect from the innovative designs. The beauty of working with so many smart people is that the problems always get solved with creative new ideas.

At the 2009 Rochester Auto Show

“I am so motivated by what I do and how it will affect our planet in the future. After six years I am still so excited about my job. My parents gave up a lot for my future, and I know they, as well as my brother are extremely proud of my work.  My friends also think it’s ‘wicked cool’ that I get to work on the cutting edge technologies.”

She puts the technology into perspective for us. “Think about if you lived in a crowded city. With fuel cells, there is no pollution or smog, no worry of health issues – just a release of water vapor. There would be no catastrophic events that come from off-shore drilling because hydrogen can be safely produced anywhere. There are opportunities to use a variety of methods to produce hydrogen. For us locally we could use the electricity that is generated from Niagara Falls, others could use solar, wind and even thermal energy to get their car fuel.”

Three years ago Lucy was teased by a colleague about not running at the annual Corporate Challenge 3.5-mile run. Always up for a challenge, Lucy started running and has kept it up doing 3-mile runs 2-3 times a week.  “There are a lot of runners at the Honeoye Falls facility, it’s a great group.  Running helps me stay fit and gets me outside getting fresh clean air – just like the air from the exhaust of a Chevy fuel cell vehicle.” J

Merritt @ the track

Merritt Johnson, Design Release Engineer, X26R Electric Pump AC Cables

Vintage designs: Staying true to the engineer in me, I’m really into design and architecture. I purchased this cool mid-century modern house and I’m always looking for vintage furniture designs.

If I only knew then: When I get the chance, I like to read biographies of historical American figures. My dad worked in the Reagan administration, so I like learning about what was going on when I was too young to know!

Busted!:  Aside from swimming and racing (you think I have too many hobbies?!) I like to unwind by sitting on the couch and watching MythBusters. I love watching Adam and Jamie try to disprove the latest myths – especially when they’re auto-related.

My job is amazing. I work for GM but I get to live in sunny, southern California. You’re probably wondering how I got this cushy deal, so I’ll start from the beginning.

I grew up in northern Virginia, near the DC-area. I’ve always had an interest in anything mechanical and science-related so I developed a love for cars early on in life. I went to Kenyon College, a private, Ohio-based liberal arts school but soon transferred to the University of Southern California to study mechanical engineering.

After graduation, I went to work for various aftermarket part manufacturers including AEM, where I created air intakes and electronic management systems and Turbonetics, where I designed turbo chargers and the parts related to the turbo systems. In between my time spent with Turbonetics and AEM, I was a member of a professional race team at the SCCA World Challenge Series.

The World Challenge Championship is a production-based race series in which manufacturers and aftermarket suppliers compete to prove their products. I was a race engineer, helping with suspension set-up and vehicle dynamics. We actually competed against Cadillac! Cadillac won, but it was still a lot of fun.

I loved working on performance parts but I saw that the market was shifting toward advanced powertrains and hybrid and electric motor development and thought it was a good chance for me to learn about these emerging technologies before I was behind the eight ball. I knew performance parts weren’t going anywhere, so I thought I’d give it a shot. I didn’t realize you could even work for GM without being based in Detroit until I saw the job posting.

I started my career with GM in 2008 at the Powertrain Advanced Technology Center in Torrance, Calif., working on the development of electric motors for future concept vehicles. The company began to further expand its hybrid programs and started asking people to spearhead certain projects. I had the opportunity to work on the high voltage cabling for the hybrid vehicles.

I currently work on the second-generation rear-wheel drive hybrid program, which is the system that’s in the GMC Yukon and Sierra Hybrids and the Chevrolet Tahoe and Silverado Hybrids. The system uses a pump in the transmission to circulate the transmission oil. The pump is driven by an electric motor. I am the design release engineer for the high voltage electric cables that transfer the power from the inverter to the motor in the electric pump. Because they’re high voltage, the cables need a lot of attention in terms of safety for the driver as well as service technicians. Shielding for electrical interference is also another important aspect of the design – we need to monitor the heat, temperature and vibrations in the vehicle. So my job is really important for the safety of the vehicle and its passengers.

When I’m not working, you’ll find me in the water. I’ve been a competitive swimmer for as long as I can remember and I still swim as part of the Long Beach Shore Aquatics. In fact, we’re organizing a big swim in Long Beach this year to benefit brain cancer research in honor of Klaus Barth, a local, well-respected swim prodigy who recently succumbed to the disease.

Jocelyn Allen

Editor’s Note:  Our friend Jocelyn Allen, the director of OnStar communications, spends her days promoting the good that OnStar does for GM customers all over the country. She’s the kind of person who brightens up the room when she enters. She’s smart, savvy and full of positive energy. Even better, she uses that energy to do good in the world: she’s deeply involved with her family and church, in revitalizing the city of Detroit, and is truly changing the lives of young girls through her non-profit organization, Divas4Life. Divas4Life gives girls the vital skills they need to become strong, independent, inspiring women. In short, Jocelyn is an all-around great lady. Take a moment to find out for yourself in this recent profile Real Simple magazine ran about Jocelyn.

Debbie Jones, UAW Local 362 (GM employee for 33 years!)

The most interesting experience I’ve had at GM was working at the Fort Wayne Assembly Plant. We were the first to see whenever new paint colors came out or any redesigns of vehicles. I feel like I’ve come full circle now. I started at Bay City and hopefully I’ll end my career here – going full circle.

GM just announced $10.5 million investment at Bay City, part of a $500 million total investment between the Tonawanda Engine plant, Defiance Foundry and us. We are thrilled that GM has shown this level of confidence in us.

I spend my weekends attending my son Matt’s sporting events, like basketball and baseball. I also love to visit gourmet food stores and shop for different olive oils and wines from around the world. I do like to cook, with lasagna being my specialty.

As diligent as I am about my health, I’m also very motivated about the quality of my work. I have to sign my initials on everything I check that goes out the door, and I don’t want anything with my name on it to come back! Bay City employees really care about the customers and we’ll do whatever it takes to provide the best quality parts possible.