Kim Foster’s FGF journey: a transformation through the senses 

If the walls of FGF’s Brownsburg, Indiana production facility could talk, they would have decades of stories to share about challenges, perseverance, and success. 

But since walls can’t speak, we get those stories instead through Kim Foster, who has been part of the site for 30 years and now serves as Site Sanitation Leader, growing her career alongside Brownsburg’s own transformation. 

Kim’s journey is one best experienced through the senses: the changes she saw, the feedback she heard, the cleanliness she smelled, the warmth she felt, and the success she and the team tasted along the way. 

A transformative sight 

Kim joined the plant in 1996, well before FGF acquired Weston Foods and with it the Brownsburg facility in 2022. That gave her a front-row seat to years of change: new lines, policies, people, machines, and eventually, new owners. 

She started as a temporary Team Member and went on to wear nearly every hat in doughnut production, including filler, mixer, packaging operator, process lead, and line leader. 

“I’ve seen a lot of changes in this building,” she shares. “Every position I went in involved learning the old process, and then the machines and the systems get upgraded, so then we have to turn around and learn the new process.” 

Even as more change came with FGF, Kim said the shift has been positive: “Our production lines are getting better care. The production teams have started to get the guidance and equipment they need. I think the atmosphere and the people have definitely gotten better.” 

Listening for feedback 

For Kim, one of the biggest changes has been the way Team Members are gaining development opportunities at FGF. Through the Leadership Effectiveness Measurement survey, she heard direct feedback from her team and used it to grow. 

“You know that nobody’s perfect. But then when you see how your team feels and hear what they think you need to work on, then you can step back and be like, I do need to do this better,” she said. 

One of the most meaningful pieces of feedback came from a Team Member who encouraged her to give the team more room to do their work: “They said, ‘I love working with her, she’s awesome, but she needs to learn to step back and let us do our job.’” 

Leadership Effectiveness Measurement, along with coaching and leadership learning sessions, helped Kim build trust in her team and continue developing as a leader. For her, it has been a “good learning experience” thus far. 

Smelling opportunities 

That desire to keep learning led Kim from Production to Sanitation. After decades of knowing the plant, its machines, processes, and people, she stepped into the Site Sanitation Leader role ready for more. 

“I was ready for something different, a new challenge,” she shared. “I know the building, I know the equipment, so I just have to learn the sanitation side of things.” 

And learn she did. From audits and schedules to SOPs and chemicals and cleaning processes, Kim spent the past year absorbing everything and picking up new skills. “It’s been fun. It definitely has not been boring. It has kept my mind going, for sure,” she said. 

She assumed the role in the thick of FGF’s Sanitation Transformation Program, a North America-wide effort to modernize sanitation with new roles, specialized training, streamlined processes, and digital tools. 

The program has made a visible impact on the site, one that Team Members notice based on their feedback. That reaction matters because sanitation is often noticed only when something is wrong. At Brownsburg, Team Members are seeing the difference in a plant that looks brighter and feels cared for. 

“You always hear people talk about transformations of different sorts,” Kim said, “but when you actually live it and actually see it with your own eyes, it’s nice.” 

Feeling like family 

One message from leadership during the program rollout stuck with her: the building had been there for 30 years, and the goal was to help it thrive for another 30. Immediately, she said, she understood her assignment. 

That stewardship for the next generation is entrenched in FGF’s mission, but also means something personal to Kim. When she started at the plant, her oldest daughter was just 4 years old. “Now she’s 34, and she actually works night shift here in production,” she shared. 

When people ask why she has stayed so long, Kim’s answer is simple: “I love the people that work here. We’ve watched our kids grow up, our grandkids grow up, and there’s a couple of people here I still work with from when I started.” 

This tight-knit bond has even earned her the nickname “Mama Kim” among fellow Team Members. “We work good together, and they know that if they have an issue and they need help, they know they can come to me and I’ll do my best to get a result,” she said. 

Tasting success 

After nearly 30 years, Kim has earned the right to give advice. For someone joining FGF, she keeps it simple: “Ask questions. Be ready to learn. Take notes. Explore.” 

Then she adds something shaped by years of seeing how each step connects to the bigger picture: “Don’t have your blinders on. Take the whole picture in.” 

To Kim, making doughnuts may happen on the production line, but it takes everyone to make the work possible. Sanitation plays a role. Maintenance plays a role. Shipping plays a role. Production plays a role. 

“Everybody plays a role in making that happen,” she said. “So be ready to learn and don’t be afraid to ask questions.” 

At FGF, growth does not always happen in a straight line. Sometimes it happens when someone says yes to something new, when a leader learns to step back, or when a team transforms a building from the inside out, as Kim can attest. 

Ready for your own transformation? Explore careers at FGF now and start your journey with us!