In this special episode, Andrea Stenberg, emergency services production cleaning manager with Paul Davis Restoration of Portland & Vancouver, Washington, joins us to share her story and insights. She is the winner of R&R’s 2021 Ladder Award, an annual award honoring outstanding young restoration professionals under 35 years of age.

This interview captures her complete career story up until now, starting with her path to restoration and how she stumbled onto it by accident after working in healthcare. Not long after joining a Paul Davis franchise in the Northwest, Stenberg was immersed in the fire section.

“I was hooked immediately,” she said. “Everything about it, from what we’re cleaning, what we’re using, the systems involved. It was like, I felt like a chemist mixing all the cleaning solutions that would take smoke and fire out. … It just kind of started there and never stopped. I just kept reading more and getting more certifications.”

To learn more about Stenberg, our first- and second-runners up, and this year’s Ladder Award judges, read the cover story of our September 2021 eMagazine.

This episode covers:

• Stenberg’s current objectives and day-to-day responsibilities at Paul Davis of Portland / Vancouver
• Her impressive list of industry certificates, designations and awards
• How and why she joined the restoration industry
• Stenberg’s specialty areas and favorite aspects of the work she does
• Her most memorable project
• Her self-proclaimed addiction to skill building 
• Stenberg’s passions for advancing her own knowledge and skillset, in addition to those of her colleagues
• Her experience as a woman in a male-dominated field
• The biggest career lessons she’s learned thus far
• Advice to young people considering a career in restoration
• Advice to under-35s who are already members of the restoration industry and aspire to advance as she has

Check out this episode of Ask the Expert to learn more. You can watch the video here or listen to the audio version of our conversation here. You can also find our show on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Just search for Restoration & Remediation Ask the Expert, then hit Follow.

Keep your eyes open and ears peeled for nominations to reopen for next year’s Ladder Award in mid-2022!