Making it Happen

Cari Clemons approached July 11, 2024, like any other workday. She clocked in by 7, another busy slate ahead of her. On paper, it was all the same. But in her mind, she was battling intermittent waves of hopeful anxiety as she anticipated the fateful news she’d been patiently awaiting for days.

Then an R&D scientist at Hormel Foods, Clemons had applied for a dream promotion a few weeks prior. The Brand Fuel center of excellence had been looking for an innovation manager, and Clemons, she knew, was one of several qualified candidates to have applied for the position.

Clemons had always worked adjacent to innovation up to that point, with experience ranging from lab-test executions to project management over a 20-plus-year career. Still, she desired more, hence her intuitive anxiety on the morning of July 11. She suspected the big news was imminent, a hunch made all the nerve-wracking that day by the physical presence of the hiring manager in question.

This is it, Clemons thought. She had worked three years for this very opportunity, never shy to go the extra mile in pursuit of her own professional development. And that day, she sensed, was the moment of truth.

That truth: The job was hers.

“I couldn’t believe it,” said Clemons, who that day was awarded the position of Hormel Foods innovation manager. “I just wanted it so bad. I worked so hard to get myself in position to be considered for a role like this, and I could not have done it without the support of my managers and this company.”

I worked so hard to get myself in position to be considered for a role like this, and I could not have done it without the support of my managers and this company.
Cari Clemons

Pieces in Place

Clemons first joined Hormel Foods following the acquisition of the PLANTERS^® snacking portfolio in 2021. Managerial excellence appeared evident from Day 1, she recalls.

“I’ve never felt more supported by a company than I do here,” said Clemons, who worked for 10 different organizations over a 24-year career before becoming a Hormel Foods team member. “My managers here are absolutely incredible.”

Upon joining, Clemons was also introduced to her new company’s commitment to continuing education for team members. With Hormel Foods, she gained access to a considerable selection of educational resources, which later contributed mightily to her professional development. To date, Clemons has completed two innovation certificate courses — both facilitated by Hormel Foods via prestigious universities — to strengthen her innovation chops and bolster her capacity for inspiration and creativity, all in pursuit of a future opportunity she knew one day would come.

“I’ve always been that person that wants to continue to learn, that wants a challenge,” Clemons said. “I always had confidence knowing I had the support of my managers as I asked to get involved in new things. They were there for me every step of the way.”

Enabled and Empowered

Nate Smit, the company’s breakthrough innovation lead, saw a lot of his younger self in Clemons. He, too, started in R&D when he first came to work at Hormel Foods 23 years ago. Smit could also sense Clemons’ passion for innovation. Over the next three years, Smit witnessed that passion in action.

“She took the initiative, and she really set the tone on what she wanted to be. And then she went and got it,” said Smit, who mentored Clemons in her quest, as he’s done with other aspiring innovators over the years. Smit helped Clemons expand her network within the company, and in time began assigning innovation projects for her to oversee, all at her urging.

“She has a passion for this field,” said Dan Miller, director of package development at Hormel Foods, who then oversaw Clemons as a manager. It was Miller who first referred Clemons to Smit as a high-potential prospect for the innovation team. “When she worked here in packaging,” Miller said, “she did a great job, but when the innovation projects started happening more frequently, her whole demeanor went to another level with the smiles on her face and the energy and excitement. Her passion was obvious to all of us.”

The more Clemons learned, the more she took on. Miller and other R&D managers began pushing more innovation-centric projects her way in the lab, all the while supportive of her long-term aspirations. Smit kept her busy, as well, introducing her to projects and conversations around AI and other new technologies. Smit also recommended that Clemons bolster her resume with company-funded certificate courses, first recommending a course that he himself had recently completed.

When she worked here in packaging, she did a great job, but when the innovation projects started happening more frequently, her whole demeanor went to another level with the smiles on her face and the energy and excitement. Her passion was obvious to all of us.”
Dan Miller, director of package development at Hormel Foods

Clemons was eager for the grind. Under no direct obligation to do so, she loaded her plate with all of it. Now, she’s a full-time innovation manager for the company that empowered her to make it happen, a company she’s grateful to call home.

“Anytime I wanted to pursue something or explore something while working at Hormel Foods, I was given the opportunity to do it,” Clemons said. “I was never held back or told I shouldn’t get involved in something. Everyone here has always been very supportive, and that has really meant a lot to me. I’m a very curious person, so them giving me the opportunity to have that freedom and offer me such incredible support, it’s been an amazing gift.”

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