About the Founder

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Kristen is the founder of Rooted Resilience LLC and an architect of resilience and transformation for the industrial sector. With more than three decades of experience across manufacturing, energy, and operations leadership, she has built a career on helping organizations grow stronger financially, operationally, and culturally, especially under pressure.

As an executive leader, Kristen has consistently delivered measurable results, including revenue growth, six-figure cost reductions, and significant gains in production efficiency. Her approach integrates strategic planning, process optimization, and pragmatic innovation to help organizations not only perform, but endure. She is known for translating complex data into actionable strategy and guiding companies through high-stakes transformation with clarity and confidence.

Kristen’s expertise in operational resilience is grounded in real-world experience. She has designed and implemented emergency response and business continuity plans for manufacturing environments and served as an Operations Section Chief during Hurricane Harvey, leading large-scale recovery efforts in the face of disruption. This combination of frontline crisis leadership and executive strategy makes her a trusted advisor to organizations navigating uncertainty and change.

In her role as General Manager at Gates Machine Tool Repair, Kristen leads both financial and operational strategy for a multi-million-dollar enterprise. She drives market expansion, strengthens customer relationships, and builds strategic partnerships that position the company for long-term growth in an evolving industrial landscape. Her leadership style is data-driven, people-centered, and focused on sustainable performance.

Beyond the boardroom, Kristen brings a unique dimension to resilience through her lifelong commitment to physical strength and personal training. As a certified personal trainer with decades of experience, she understands that true resilience is both mental and physical. She integrates mind-body discipline, strength training, and performance mindset into her philosophy, reinforcing that leaders and organizations alike must be conditioned to withstand stress, adapt, and thrive.

Kristen is also an AI CERTs Certified Trainer, equipping organizations and leaders with practical, responsible approaches to adopting AI in industrial and operational environments. She combines this expertise with her background in digital transformation, change management, and stakeholder engagement to ensure that innovation is both strategic and sustainable.

She is deeply committed to developing others, mentoring emerging leaders, speaking at industry conferences, and building teams that deliver customer-focused innovation and resilient execution.

Kristen holds a Business Continuity certificate from MIT, is certified in AI governance, and earned her accounting degree Summa Cum Laude. She is an active member of Women in Manufacturing and the DRI Foundation, contributing to the advancement of resilience practices and the next generation of industry leadership.

Through Rooted Resilience LLC, Kristen partners with organizations to build stronger systems, stronger cultures, and stronger leaders, because resilience isn’t just a capability, it’s a competitive advantage.