Job: Independent board director at Minerals Technologies Inc.

At work: As a member of the board of a publicly traded, global company, I am focused on governance, risk management, audit and financial reporting and compliance. I am a qualified financial expert on the audit committee and a member of the nominating and governance committee. The board also visits key operating sites around the world. The most recent board trip was this year to visit plants near Beijing and Shanghai. Previously, I was a senior financial executive within the aerospace and defense sector for over 25 years at three publicly traded companies, Northrop Grumman (chief audit executive, chief financial officer enterprise services), Huntington Ingalls, Newport News Shipbuilding (chief financial officer, controller), and Maxar Technologies (chief accounting officer). Prior to that, I served clients in technology, financial services and aerospace and defense at Ernst & Young. I am a certified public accountant.

Volunteer activities: I am particularly passionate about organizations that support education, childhood and youth development, and the performing arts. I serve on the boards of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Soundscapes and am the immediate past chairman of the board of Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast. In September, I was elected to the national board of Girl Scouts of the USA. I also am a sustaining sponsor and table captain for Peake Childhood Center’s annual fundraising breakfast.

Home and family: I am originally from Springfield, Missouri, started my career in Dallas, and moved to Yorktown in 2011 to become CFO of Newport News Shipbuilding when Northrop Grumman spun off Huntington Ingalls as an independent public company. I am married and have three grown children, the youngest of which is in college. All of them completed their education through high school in Virginia at Hampton Roads Academy and Tabb High School.

Motivating factor: The power of teamwork and the rich contributions that each individual brings to the table. People are the secret sauce within any company — they are the fabric of the culture and the innovation and creativity that keeps the operation strong and growing.

Advice for women in business: Stay curious and ask questions. Never ever think you must know everything because we learn and grow through others. We all stand on the tall shoulders of those who have come before us. Take every opportunity to be a mentor within the workplace as you grow and advance in your profession.

The one thing I would change about Hampton Roads: I wish we could better leverage our resources as one Hampton Roads rather than through so much separation within each municipality.

Professional goal in five years: I find working on corporate and nonprofit boards very rewarding because the role is to work with the CEO to support the strategy and growth for each enterprise. It allows me to leverage my previous business experience in new ways.

Downtime: I love to travel both within the U.S. and internationally. I also enjoy creative writing and spending time with my family and friends.

What really gets under my skin: It frustrates me when the fallback answer to why things are done a certain way is because that’s the way we’ve always done it. The success of a business is dependent on its ability to perform, innovate and grow, and in order to do that, things cannot remain the same. We need to be curious and challenge the “how” and the “why” in order to lead into the future and garner positive results.

https://www.dailypress.com/2025/12/15/women-in-business-2025-carolyn-pittman/