What’s your career journey so far and how did you enter the construction industry/SMD?
I spent some time as a substitute teacher in a secondary school which I really enjoyed. Working with the students in that environment was very motivating and exposed me to all kinds of people and personalities. In the construction sector, I had some work experience with a civil engineering practice before starting with SMD in 2022 as a management trainee.
Can you tell us about your current role and what a typical day looks like?
I’m now an operations assistant and there is no typical day! Every day is different. In the morning I go through a varied checklist with lots of pre-qualification questions to address. I also work on social media and social value activities which really engages me because these illustrate the heart and soul of our business.
Do you feel that it’s a male dominated industry?
Yes, it clearly is on sites but it’s improving. I do see more female engineers, but I’d love to see more women out there in other jobs and disciplines. As for the office, there are lots of women in office-based roles.
What challenges have you faced and how have you overcome them?
Thankfully, SMD is the type of company where you wouldn’t be exposed to gender-based challenges. There’s always banter on site, but it’s not in the negative way it used to be in the industry in the old days.
What does inclusion look like to you?
There is no gender behind the roles in construction. People associate the industry with men wearing hardhats and steel toe-cap boots but there are lots of other roles. If you have the right attitude and the initiative to work hard, your employer will invest in you regardless of your gender. I want it to get to a point that women don’t stick out on site, that it’s normal to have women there.
Do you think there are any misconceptions about women working in the construction industry?
There can be. You don’t have to act like a man, you can bring feminine characteristics to the job and just be yourself. When I started as a trainee, I was treated just the same as the male trainees, and there are lots of roles in the industry – they aren’t all site-based.
What skills/characteristics do you think women bring to the construction sector?
I think that women are organised in a different way. They bring a mix of logical and emotional thinking to the workplace. The success of a project is down to the success of the team. Women are more likely to ask questions and try and understand the behaviours of colleagues, and this can save a lot of time when it comes to team dynamics.
Women are nurturing and caring, and can use these characteristics to bring a better outcome for a project.
What advice would you give women and girls considering entering the industry?
There are jobs for everyone and every type of personality – it’s not just for men. If you don’t want to work on site, there are lots of roles that you find in every business. It’s a great industry.
Ask as many questions as possible and find a company and role that aligns with your morals and values and always find out the facts rather than just accepting someone’s opinion.
