Last week, Aggregates Manager highlighted women in the construction workforce in their “VIDEO of the Week” segment featuring Graniterock.
It’s no question that for many years, a construction site has been perceived as a place for a man, but the industry is making strides to break free from the status quo. Women who are brave enough to bust through this gender stereotype and purse their passions will only amplify the number of female voices in the industry for years to come.
According to the video, women only make up 9% of the workforce, and one has to wonder what can be done for more women to find a place in the industry? It will take a comprehensive commitment from individuals, companies, schools, and governments to truly balance the workforce for the better.
Despite the high male to female ratio, the Heavy Building Materials industry seems to be more accepting of a diverse workforce. Diversity helps foster better decision making and enhanced business operations, and having women in the workforce offers up new, valuable perspectives. In fact, according to the Peterson Institute, companies who were in the top 25% in gender diversity of their workforce were 46% more likely to outperform their industry average. Men and women are very different when it comes to problem-solving strategies, and top players in the industry realize this and take advantage of this opportunity.
It’s encouraging to see women flourishing in the construction space, however, many factors still exist that create barriers to more young women entering the field. Check out this infographic from PlanGrid that includes tips on how construction companies can encourage and recruit more female talent.
There will be a breakout session at ELEVATE–The Command Alkon Conference titled “Women in the Industry” on Tuesday, October 30 at 2pm. This session will touch on the current state for women in the industry, the value that we can bring to, as well as gain from the industry, and what we can do together to keep moving towards the future.
Anne Ellis, Founder and CEO of Ellis Global, has a plethora of experience that makes her perfectly positioned to speak at this session. We can't wait to hear all about the opportunities that being a woman in the industry has offered her and how she worked to overcome any challenges that were thrown her way.
If you will be at ELEVATE, be sure to check the session out!
