Workforce

Women in Construction Are Built for Success

Women bring a distinct advantage to the construction site, offering a new take and fresh perspective.
By Lacy Baumgardner
March 7, 2022
Topics
Workforce

While the construction industry gender gap is still a significant challenge, the number of women in the field continues to steadily increase, up to 11% in 2021 from 9% in 2017. For women interested in pursuing a career in the construction industry, a variety of opportunities exist. These opportunities, combined with hard work and dedication, as well as the right corporate culture, learning experiences and skillsets can allow women to pave a path of long-term career success in the construction industry.

When considering a career in construction, women should first know that a lack of experience does not preclude them from success. In fact, females often bring a distinct advantage to the construction site, offering a new take and a fresh perspective. And although construction is still often considered a non-traditional female career path, many women possess skillsets that can specifically help them excel and elevate not only construction projects but also the industry, particularly in specific roles. For example, the project engineer role allows women new to construction to enter the field with limited experience, receive hands-on training on all facets of a project and significantly impact project success.

Responsible for maintaining smooth onsite project operation, a project engineer provides day-to-day onsite project management to support her fellow project manager. This includes conducting project meetings, subcontractor management and oversight of minute details critical to project success. As a career choice, the project engineer role can be a natural fit for women who are multitaskers, skilled at problem-solving and have a talent for seeing a project’s big picture while remaining attentive to details.

A female project engineer can also offer a unique perspective that is often lacking in the male-dominated construction industry. For those female team members who are naturally detail-focused, identifying longtime bottlenecks may be easier and lead to more efficient processes, including reducing the delays that often occur with the prolonged review process of project documentation.

More than any of these skill sets, though, a sense of confidence in their abilities and adaptability to learning will best serve women entering the construction field. Since the industry welcomes candidates with a variety of degrees and experience levels, self-confidence and the willingness to learn on the job and pivot with the quickly changing demands of a construction site can be equally important to long-term career success. In addition, the camaraderie, support and mentorships established between longtime female construction professionals and their counterparts new to the industry can be invaluable in establishing a sense of comfort and fostering success in the male-dominated construction environment.

However, even as the number of women in construction increases, acceptance, growth and success for women in the industry begins at the top. Company leaders must set an example when acknowledging female employees and their many contributions in the industry. Additionally, support from on-the-job male colleagues is critical to the acceptance of women on construction sites. Often, this means creating an intentionally inclusive culture where male colleagues introduce and include female team members in every project meeting and clearly communicate their roles on the team so that subcontractors and other partners view them as integral to project success from day one. This type of support from male colleagues not only goes a long way in recognizing women as valuable team members but also addresses one of the most significant growing pains in the industry’s pursuit of greater gender inclusivity.

In addition, companies can ensure hiring practices that encourage female applicants and implement no-tolerance policies that establish clear boundaries against longtime industry challenges. By doing this, companies help eliminate the industry stereotypes that have often kept women from considering a career in construction.

While career opportunities in construction are plentiful for women, further exposure to and education around the many career paths available is needed. Together the industry and construction companies must work to educate students in the classroom, specifically young female students considering future career paths, about the opportunities for women in the industry. Additionally, thorough job onboarding processes, training and networking opportunities will assist in setting women up for long-term career success. Taking measures like these, which encourage women to learn about construction as a potential career path, provide comprehensive training. Supporting women’s job authority and achievements as colleagues will ensure the continued success of an industry that is already benefiting from an increase in female professionals.

by Lacy Baumgardner
Lacy Baumgardner is a project engineer for Harrison, Walker & Harper, a leading construction management company founded in 1887 with offices in Paris, Texas and McKinney, Texas.

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