NANAIMO – Saywell Contracting Ltd. is one of the busier builders on Central Vancouver Island, and President and CEO Sheldon Saywell says three women are coordinating some of the company’s larger projects.
Project Manager Bonnie Hunter
Jackie MacDonald and Holly Rivet are Project Coordinators and Bonnie Hunter is a Project Manager at Saywell, something the owner is very proud about.
Jackie has been a Project Coordinator for over 18 years ago. Prior to joining Saywell, she was an engineering technologist in consulting and a project manager.
Asked if the job and opportunity at Saywell was what she thought it would be, she agreed, and has noticed that attitudes from others in a traditionally male-dominated industry have changed over the years. “20 years ago it was definitely different, but now it is common,” she says, observing the growth in the number of women in the construction industry.
Bonnie observes: “I think the idea that it’s a male-dominated industry is almost becoming a myth. At Saywell, there are more women employed in the office in Project Manager and Coordinator roles than there are men.
Project Manager Holly Rivet
“I think that if you can do the job well, that’s all that really matters,” she adds. “Over the years I have had more than one sub-contractor comment that they wanted to employ more women in their own businesses after working with myself and other female co-workers.”
Holly believes the question that needs to be asked is: How have other workers and customers responded to having women in the industry?
“Other workers and customers have responded positively because my goal has always been to have great relationships with people,” she states. “I don’t feel that being a woman makes me different in the industry. Yes, there are people who treat you poorly, but that is not because I am a woman – it’s because they aren’t good people and treat most people poorly.”
Bonnie has been with Saywell for almost two years, following over 15 years at another construction company, where she took industry-specific courses through the Red Seal program.
Project Manager Jackie MacDonald
“The construction industry is a balance between change and consistency,” she notes. “The tasks we have to complete remain the same from project to project, but the scope, method, people, location, etc., all change.
“Stepping into the role I am in was an opportunity I was provided years ago without really knowing what to expect or what I wanted from it. Here I am more than 15 years later with a career I hadn’t imagined but very much enjoy.”
Holly is working towards Project Management Gold Seal certification, and has been with Saywell for six and a half years.
“I had a bit of fear coming into the position as I did not possess much construction knowledge,” she recalls. “It is certainly different than what I thought it would be. It’s not construction but, just as the title suggests, coordination. So long as you are organized, consistent, can prioritize and have systems in place, you can tackle several projects at once without having to actually juggle them.