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Suzanne Morrison, an installation manager with Ace Hardware Home Services, was named an Air Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration News 2026 Top Woman in HVACR. In an interview with Hardware Retailing, she described her path from office assistant to manager and called for mentorship, clear advancement opportunities and greater visibility for women in the trades.
Suzanne Morrison, an installation manager with Ace Hardware Home Services, was named an Air Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration News (ACHR News) 2026 Top Woman in HVACR, according to an interview published by Hardware Retailing. Morrison used the conversation to describe her progression from office assistant to management and the workplace changes she says can help women build careers in home improvement and the trades.
Morrison said she entered the industry while looking to return to work as her children grew older. She began with office tasks including filing, inventory tracking, customer follow-up and inspection coordination. As the company expanded, she took on more responsibility and became an installation coordinator, working with customers, installers and company leaders. Those duties eventually led to her current installation manager role.
She told Hardware Retailing that learning about the industry changed her view of the work from a job into a possible long-term career. She said she was drawn to problem-solving, customer relationships and improving outcomes for employees and customers. Morrison credited continued learning and taking on new responsibilities with helping her prepare for each next role.
Morrison also said women can encounter assumptions about their place in HVAC and may need to establish their credibility before their contributions are recognized. She argued that the field includes far more than hands-on service work, listing opportunities in operations, project management, sales, leadership, technology, administration and finance. She recommended mentorship, education and visible examples of women succeeding in the industry as ways to broaden awareness and support advancement.
How Employers Can Open Career Paths
Morrison’s account points to a workforce issue for home improvement businesses: potential candidates may not know that trade-related careers extend beyond field technician roles, while existing employees may need clearer routes into leadership. Her own career began in administrative work and developed through roles tied to coordination, customer service and installation management, illustrating how experience in different parts of a business can lead to greater responsibility.
Her recommendations—mentorship, equal access to development and clear advancement paths—are practical workplace measures, rather than a claim that any one policy will resolve barriers. The interview does not quantify the number of women in HVAC or measure the effects of these approaches. It does, however, offer a perspective from a manager whose career has spanned multiple roles in the channel, and it highlights visibility and workplace culture as concerns for recruitment and retention.
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From Office Support to Installation Management
The report frames Morrison’s recognition as an occasion to discuss how people enter and advance in the home improvement channel. In her account, the move into HVAC was not initially part of a planned career path. She said she was helping a friend and looking for a way to return to work; learning more about the industry led her to see opportunities to contribute and grow.
Morrison described a gradual progression: office assistant, installation coordinator and then installation manager. As responsibilities increased, she said, she sometimes questioned whether she was ready to lead. Her stated approach was to stay prepared, ask questions, keep learning and focus on results. She also described the industry as having become more visible and supportive of women over the past decade, while stressing that progress is incomplete. Those observations reflect her experience, rather than independently measured industry-wide trends.
“One of the biggest barriers is still perception.”
— Suzanne Morrison, speaking to Hardware Retailing
What the Interview Does Not Measure
The interview does not provide figures on women’s representation in HVAC, the number of women in leadership roles, or changes in hiring and retention over time. It also does not specify which company policies Morrison’s employer currently uses or report measurable outcomes from mentorship or advancement programs. Her comments about industry change and remaining barriers are her assessment based on personal experience; the report does not independently test them against broader workforce data.
The source material also does not include Morrison’s full response about what the 2026 recognition means to her personally and professionally. No additional details about the award selection process are provided in the supplied report excerpt.
More Visibility and Development
Morrison’s interview makes no announcement of a new program, policy or hiring initiative. The next steps she advocates are ongoing workplace practices: mentoring employees, making advancement criteria clear, offering development opportunities and ensuring people are assessed on their performance and contributions rather than assumptions. Whether companies adopt those measures, and what effect they have, is not established in the report.
For readers following the recognition, the available report offers Morrison’s perspective on her career and the industry; further information about the award or company initiatives would need to come from ACHR News, Ace Hardware Home Services or subsequent reporting.
Key Questions
Who is Suzanne Morrison?
Suzanne Morrison is an installation manager with Ace Hardware Home Services. She told Hardware Retailing that she advanced from office assistant to installation coordinator and then to manager.
What recognition did Morrison receive?
Morrison was named an ACHR News 2026 Top Woman in HVACR, according to Hardware Retailing.
What barriers for women in HVAC did Morrison identify?
She cited limited awareness of the variety of careers in the trades and situations where women may have to establish their credibility before their knowledge and contributions are recognized.
What steps does Morrison recommend for employers?
She recommended mentorship, equal development opportunities, clear advancement paths and open communication, along with judging employees by their performance and contributions.
Source: hardwareretailing.com
