Abby Liubakka

Senior Product Stewardship Engineer, Tennant Company

What problem(s) are you working to solve?
With a multitude of climate-related events occurring daily around the world, companies must take it upon themselves to create ambitious, positive change. I guide and actively engage in Tennant engineering teams to design machines having lower environmental impacts, such as energy use, water use, various emissions and recyclability of components. We focus primarily on the use-phase of our machines, as this represents the majority of our value chain environmental impacts. Tennant has a long-standing history of innovation and eco-advantaged products, which provides a great foundation for my vision and pursuit of a better future.

What makes the Minneapolis and Saint Paul region (MSP) a great place to grow your career?
For me, it all started out with a great education and degree from the University of Minnesota’s College of Science and Engineering, which opened the doors to a mountain of opportunities. And with one of the highest concentrations of high-technology companies in the nation, MSP will continue to provide the challenge and excitement I crave in my career.

What do you think surprises people about MSP?
We have great food! From Eat Street, to Linden Hills, to downtown St. Paul, there is no shortage of local favorites (the legendary Juicy Lucy) or the melting-pot of ethnic restaurants (who doesn’t love a gigantic bowl of pho on a cold January day?).

What advice do you have for women engineers starting in their careers?
Determine your strengths and weaknesses and improve on all of them! One of the best rituals I have implemented is a “10-minute motivation” practice each morning, prior to opening my email. Over the years, I’ve collected articles, tips and tricks, and notes from books or training on everything from confidence-building and networking to strategy and leading change. I use these 10 minutes to review how I can achieve my goals for the day.

One of my favorite quotes to live by: “you’re braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, smarter than you think, and more competent than you know. If you never try, you’ll never succeed.”