Daily News

Anne Paradis Honored as PWC Woman of the Year

SPRINGFIELD — The Professional Women’s Chamber (PWC) has announced that Anne Paradis, chief executive officer for MicroTek Inc. in Chicopee, has been named the PWC 2015 Woman of the Year.

The award, given annually since 1954, is presented to a woman in the Western Mass. area who exemplifies outstanding leadership, professional accomplishment, and service to the community. A celebration in Paradis’s honor will be held on Tuesday, May 19 at 5:30 p.m. at the Carriage House, Storrowton Tavern, 1305 Memorial Ave., West Springfield.

“We are thrilled with this year’s honoree — a truly inspiring and accomplished woman like Anne Paradis,” said Janet Casey, PWC board president. “She is a domestic trailblazer among women in the high-tech industry, and the opportunity that she has provided to people with disabilities speaks so deeply to her sense of compassion. Her achievements are spectacular and her generosity admirable.”

Microtek was founded in 1983 with the mission of integrating individuals with disabilities into the workforce. The company provides custom cable and wire configurations, control panels, and enclosures for customers in the medical equipment, scientific test and instrumentation, life sciences, industrial, and retail industries.

Paradis was tapped to lead the organization in 1987. Under her guidance, the company has grown an average of 15% each year, expanded its product lines and client base, and created more than 80 jobs. As well, Paradis has led the organization through construction of a new 22,000-square-foot manufacturing facility, obtained industry certifications as well as ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 13485:2003 registrations, and has been awarded the Massachusetts quality-of-service certification with distinction for employment services every year since 1996.

Prior to joining MicroTek, Paradis served as a management and training consultant, served as the marketing director and employment design specialist for New England Business Associates, and spent nearly 10 years in the mental-health field. She is a member of the Baystate Health board of trustees and vice chair of its audit committee, past president of the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts board of directors, corporator of the Wentworth Institute of Technology, and former president of the National Assoc. of Supported Work Organizations board of directors.

She also served on the reference services advisory board for UMass and the electronic advisory committee for Chicopee Comprehensive High School. She is also active in the Social Enterprise Alliance, the Wire Harness Manufacturer’s Assoc., the Women Presidents’ Organization, and the Human Right Campaign, and in 2009 was named to the 21st Century Women Business Leaders Hall of Fame at Bay Path University.

Tickets for the May 19 celebration, sponsored by BusinessWest, are $55. To register, visit www.myonlinechamber.com or e-mail Kara Cavanaugh at [email protected].