August 31, 2000

More women choose construction

There are few industries more white-male dominated than construction. But women are making their mark in the industry, in the field as craft workers and as company owners, project managers and engineers, safety officers, and superintendents.

When the construction company Karen Say worked for closed, several of her field workers convinced her to strike out on her own with Saybr Contractors.

Although the industry hasn’t done well at promoting itself to men or women, more and more women are catching on to the fact that construction holds great career opportunities.

The National Foundation for Women Business Owners reports that between 1992 and 1999 more women started construction firms than any other type of business, with a 68 percent increase, from 233,128 firms started in 1992 to 391,900 firms, in 1999. The traditionally woman-owned retail and service industries only experienced 37.7 and 39.4 percent increases, respectively.

A National Association of Women in Construction survey shows the top four positions held by its members are: accounting/finance, office manager, sales/marketing/customer service and project manager.

Some local women followed a career path into construction on purpose, while others backed into it.

Karen Say, president of Saybr Contractors, began as a receptionist for a firm specializing in fuel tank installation. She moved on to accounting, then contract administration, doing the "legwork" for the estimators, and estimating.

She was promoted to operations manager and then branch manager. When the company filed for bankruptcy, she thought she was out of a job. "I hadn’t given any thought to starting a company, but, some of my field workers convinced me to do it," she said.

According to Karen, being a young woman means she has to prove she knows what she is doing before she is accepted. On the positive side, being one of very few women is a marketing advantage -- people usually remember her. In addition to her technical knowledge, she thinks her good communication skills and attention to detail are also keys to her success.

Karen likes the challenge of constantly solving new problems, and now that she’s a new mother she appreciates the flexibility her job gives her.

DeBolte Plumbing & Heating president, De Leigh, started her company to have more control over her time because she had small children at home. She began doing bookkeeping and purchasing, and let her project manager/husband Doug run jobs. De soon got out of the office to do the marketing and project management. "Now Doug and I each work with different general contractors," says De.

She finds the constant change and learning, both on the business and technical sides, is what makes her love construction. "In my 16 years in construction, acceptance of women has definitely improved," said De, "but I still have to prove that I know construction and I’m not just Doug’s wife who does the books."

Lynda Boyle, owner of Building Professionals, Inc., decided that her aptitude in math and science would lead to a career in engineering. After working for a few years as a structural engineer in a cubicle, far away from the action on the job site, Lynda took to the field and learned how to manage projects.

In 1996, she started freelancing as an engineer, project manager and owner’s representative. "I didn’t want to work fewer hours, I just wanted to work my own hours," said Lynda.

The flexibility gives her time to do volunteer work for Associated Builders & Contractors, serve on the Christmas in April board of directors and found a nonprofit called Northwest Women’s Organization Network.

Being a woman hasn’t presented her with obstacles. "There are such neat, down-to-earth people in construction," says Lynda. "I get to work with people I really enjoy, plus I get to drive around and say, ‘I helped build that, I helped design that.’ Not everyone gets to do that."

With her brother and father both project managers, Heather Beaulieu could hardly avoid a career in construction. She started out studying architecture, then took a summer construction job to help pay tuition. Her increasing interest in project management led her to take a cut in pay and become a project engineer, but she quickly advanced.

Now a project manager with Rafn Co., Heather has found fewer obstacles in reality than in perception. Her employers anticipated she might have problems, but she hasn’t. "I think I earned respect by demonstrating what I knew and asking about what I didn’t," says Heather. "I think that’s how you earn respect regardless of gender."

Heather wouldn’t think of leaving the industry. "It’s the most diverse job," says Heather "There are different things that need doing every day. I like to run the jobs but I also enjoy running the numbers, marketing, meeting with clients. I love it all."

Nine years ago when Linda Browning became Kirtley-Cole Associates’ safety officer, there weren’t many women in the safety field. "Linda started in accounting but saw the need in safety and we saw a talented and enthusiastic person so we encouraged her," says Ray Kirtley, Kirtley-Cole president.

"When I started, I felt that being a woman might make it more difficult to be accepted, but that wasn't the case at all. I found that once I proved myself, being a woman was actually an advantage," says Linda.

Now she enjoys the camaraderie and sharing of ideas and resources. "In the safety arena, there are no competitors because our goal is the same: providing a safe work environment for all of our employees," says Linda.

Mike Sotelo, vice president of field operations for W. G. Clark Construction, says he sees three times as many women in the industry as he did even five years ago. Three of the women his company trained through the Construction Industry Training Council have been promoted; one currently holds Mike’s former job as safety director.

Women in the industry agree -- they love construction and couldn’t imagine doing anything else. Not surprisingly, they love it for the same reasons that keep the white males in the industry as well.

As more women become visible at all levels, it will draw even more women to construction. It provides challenging and interesting work, good pay, opportunities for growth and the chance to be a part of an industry that provides real benefit to our society.

Other Stories:

• Even after I-200, diversity is here to stay
  
• Discrimination in the construction industry: where are we now?
  
• With a little help from his friends
  
• A look at I-200's impact
  
• Attracting more women to construction