In Episode 6 of the Behind the Summer Scenes Series, Kailee sits down with Sarah Carter, a warehouse associate turned purchasing and inventory specialist at Quality, for the series finale. Sarah shares how she followed her longtime friend and supervisor Shelly to Quality, and what it really takes to get technicians out the door each morning, starting with 6 a.m. arrivals. She compares it to getting kids off to school. She walks through the many moving parts behind every job, from staging equipment and creating purchase orders to coordinating with dispatch and sales. Sarah also talks about the team's biggest summer win: resetting the entire warehouse and rolling out ServiceTitan in the middle of peak season. She explains why communication is everything when things get busy, and why the warehouse office has become a safe space for the team. The episode wraps up with a round of summer speed questions.

For episode 3 of our Behind the Summer Scenes series, Kailee sits down with SantaMaria Bohn, install operations manager at Quality Heating, Cooling, Plumbing & Electric. SantaMaria shares her journey from CSR and install coordinator to running install operations for a team that's now over 100 employees, and what it really takes to keep installs moving when temperatures push past 100 degrees. SantaMaria opens up about supporting technicians working in challenging environments such as 100 degree attics, juggling stressed customers and worn out crews, and the moving pieces behind every HVAC install that customers rarely get to see. Plus, she shares one of her most memorable customer stories from her early days on the job. Tune in on this week’s insightful and heartwarming episode!

In this solo episode, Kailee reflects on imposter syndrome and the myth of "feeling ready" for career growth. Drawing from her own journey at Quality, from social media and community coordinator to marketing director, she shares how confidence typically follows action rather than preceding it. Kailee encourages listeners to stop waiting until they feel fully prepared and instead take the leap, reminding them that growth happens just outside the comfort zone. A short but motivating episode for anyone sitting on the edge of a new opportunity.

In this episode of Power Women of the Trades, Cassie Pound and Heather Bargender sit down with Amanda Mahaffey, co-owner of Tuck and Howell in Greenville, South Carolina, to explore her transition from accounting into leading a modernization and rebrand of the 50+ year-old HVAC business.

Amanda discusses moving the company from pen-and-paper operations to platforms like ServiceTitan, and how her financial background helped her uncover and fix negative profits and deep inefficiencies she inherited. She shares candid details on plugging cash leaks, restructuring labor, and building new processes, along with the emotional weight of making tough personnel decisions when longtime team members can't adapt to growth. The conversation also touches on rapid growth, imposter syndrome, and developing a leadership style that doesn't rely on fitting a stereotype. Packed with practical, real-world insights, this episode offers valuable takeaways for business owners, managers, and aspiring leaders across HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and construction.

In this episode of Power Women of the Trades, Cassie and Kailee sit down with Elena Chrimat, co-founder of Ideal Air Conditioning and Insulation in Phoenix, who started her company at just 23 years old. Elena shares how a background in energy audits led her and her husband into full-blown HVAC and home performance work, and why properly sized ductwork and insulation matter just as much as the equipment itself. She also opens up about the everyday challenges of being a woman in a male-dominated trade, from customers who look past her to reach a man in the room to callers who can't believe a woman is running the show. It's an honest conversation about proving yourself again and again, building a 27 person company from scratch, and refusing to let outdated assumptions slow you down. Tune in now wherever you get your podcasts, you won't want to miss this one.

In this episode of Power Women of the Trades, the host sits down with a fellow female trade business owner to discuss the challenges and rewards of staying locally owned in an era of growing private equity competition. The guest shares her frustrations with PE pricing tactics and explains why community investment and employee ownership through an ESOP model matter more to her than a big buyout. A large portion of the conversation covers her in-house training academy, which uses a unique discovery week process to identify and develop apprentices across HVAC, plumbing, and electrical, achieving a 98% retention rate. The episode wraps up with a look at the company's plans to expand and formalize its electrical department in 2026.

This week on the Power Women of the Trades Podcast, Cassie and Kailee are joined by Alicia Green, owner, CFO, and COO of Go Green Plumbing, Heating, Air & Electrical. Alicia shares the story of how she and her husband built their company from the basement of their home into one of North Carolina's leading home service businesses, all while remaining locally owned and committed to investing in their people.

Some of this year's most impactful episodes of Power Women of the Trades brought together bold voices redefining what success looks like in the home services industry. From starting over and learning to wear every hat in the business, to building a ServiceTitan consulting company rooted in real trades experience, our guests didn't hold back. They challenged the "silver bullet" culture, championed empathy-driven leadership, and shared what it truly means to build a company worth keeping.

Whether you're a technician, an office leader, or just trade-curious, these conversations prove that heart and hustle belong in the same tool belt. Don't miss the moments that moved, challenged, and inspired our community most this year.