Women in Mechanical Contracting Committee
How did you get your start in the mechanical contracting industry?
In 2004, I was hired to work on a project in Brandon, MB at Chemtrade (Canexus) Chemicals as the Project Controller for DMS Industrial. During this project, I had the privilege to work closely with the EPCM contractor and Canexus senior management team. Subsequent to this project, I spent 4 years working directly for Canexus as the Project Cost Control Auditor in North Vancouver, BC. My responsibility was to oversee the sub-contractor cost reporting accuracy on a $250M technology conversion project. In 2009, I returned to MB and became the Chief Financial Officer at DMS Industrial and ServcoCanada group of companies.
What is the best career advice you ever received?
Surround yourself with people that are experts and more experienced than you. You do not have to always have all the answers, but you do need to surround yourself with a great team that does.
What do you like best about this industry?
The constant changing and challenging environment
What is your current job and what do you love about it?
I am the Chief Financial Officer at ServcoCanada. I love my job as it allows me to work with a diverse group of people from around the world. I am challenged on a daily basis meeting new people with new ideas and trying to understand and utilize their best practices.
Who was your best mentor? Lessons?
Honestly, my husband who is also the president at ServcoCanada. He has encouraged me to explore opportunities I was unsure about, push myself out of my comfort zone, embrace the challenge and strive to be better every day. He has supported me as CFO, but more importantly as a person.
Secondly, was my supervisor at Canexus who understood my strengths and weaknesses and gave me the chance to work with and grow with his team. He supported and encouraged me through my weaknesses and inexperience, teaching me the importance of team collaboration and a supportive work environment.
If you could give any woman starting in this industry any advise, what would it be?
Work hard, listen to and learn from the experienced team around you and keep pushing through each obstacle as there is an immense feeling of satisfaction when you become part of a team where your experience is valued.
Hardest obstacle? Industry related if any?
Being a woman in a predominantly male construction industry required me to extra work hard for recognition and respect. I chose to embrace this obstacle (usually!!) and used it to push me harder rather than slow me down.
Community give back? Any organizations your involved, volunteer, support in the community?
Live Different and The Samantha Mason Foundation: Angels of Compassion https://livedifferent.com/
https://livedifferent.com/partners/angels-of-compassion-the-samantha-mason-foundation/
Who was my best mentor?
I am very lucky to have my mother as a pioneer in this industry. She was a medical doctor by trade, then self-taught construction project management/engineering when she and my step-father started a mechanical contracting company. She blazed a path for women in construction and taught me that there were 2 important things – always go to a meeting prepared and know what you know and what you don’t know and be confident with that.
How Did I Get to Where I Am Now?
I started at the bottom and did everything I could possibly do to learn the industry first hand. So, from shop clean up to inventory to drafting to estimating to project managing to starting my own company to expanding with employees to building a new office facility to growing and now looking at succession planning, with some payroll and accounting thrown in where needed at the start. There was nothing I didn’t want to try so that I understood what it meant and what it took to be good at it. Then I looked at what I was good at and focused on finding good people to do the things I couldn’t do well. It was a process of hard work and drive to achieve more, partnered with finding the right people to work with you.
There have been many milestones in the business over the last 20 years, but one of the most satisfying was winning the Canadian Woman Entrepreneur of the Year in 2003. The satisfying part was not the winning, although that was a great honour. It was the requirement to submit an explanation of why I deserved to win. I spent a lot of time looking back at the 5 years we had been in business and all the accomplishments that occurred during that time. It was a bit of a shock to see all the things that had happened. You get so focused on moving forward, and what you need to do to have a successful business, that it takes something like this to make you stop and turn around and recognize what you have accomplished in that time.
Personal Objectives
This is such an exciting time for women – period! There are tremendous opportunities within the construction industry in every capacity, from the trades, to engineering, estimating, finance, safety, to management. From a personal perspective, I am both excited and honoured to be part of a collective group of dynamic women who are combining years of experience in the industry together with a network of contacts and are working to forge a path for other women to take hold of opportunities while providing leadership, direction and mentorship through the WiMC.
Advice
I have had the privilege to work in the construction industry for just over 20 years. It has not gone without its challenges. Looking back, it was all of those challenges that shaped me into the person and leader that I am today. When I am asked for advice or how I managed to have a career and be a mother, wife, friend etc the answer is not magical but very simple. Hard work and lots of hours. Opportunities are given to us, but it is what you do with them. Everyone’s starting point in life will be different, but I am a firm believer that everyone can be successful, it just depends on how they define success.
Don’t be afraid to go after what you want, but do so with intelligence and with integrity. The older I become, I realize the importance of character. When you first start out you are looking to please everyone else. Take time to establish your self-worth. If I was starting out again, I wish I would have had more of this wisdom – unfortunately, you can’t buy that, it only comes with experience so its best to enjoy the journey.
Mentors, Influential People
Categorically my parents and my children. I am blessed beyond belief with the family I was born into and for my 3 children who impact every decision I make. Family keeps you grounded.
Having said that, at this moment in my life and career I feel obliged to give those people who presented me with serious challenges or obstacles some credit as well, as it was often in those circumstances that I thrived from a personal development perspective. It was those people that gave me the internal desire to be different than them … to learn more, give back, adapt better, listen effectively and think differently. There is a lesson to be learned from everyone and every circumstance!! Don’t let people keep you stuck.
Main objective of WIMC?
One of my personal objectives for WIMC is to increase the visibility of women in the mechanical industry. Increasing visibility will increase interest and the involvement of women, in what has been, a traditionally male-dominated industry. Young women may not consider this as a career path if they do not see themselves represented in this industry. As women of the mechanical industry, we need to show others that there is an opportunity here for women.
What do you like best about this industry?
There is much I like about this industry. I enjoy the variety it has to offer in the people I work with and also the type of work we provide our customers. I also like the idea of building things. I’m proud to think of the projects our team has completed over the years. We have left our mark not only in our city but also in our province and throughout Canada. Most importantly, I find it rewarding in helping our customers. Whether it’s troubleshooting a service issue, maintaining their mechanical system, or completing a project, we are enabling our customers to focus on what’s most important to them…their business.
Community give back?
If you’re in the position and have the ability, I believe it is important to give back to the community.
As a company, we recognize the importance of bettering our community, which is why we support organizations whose mandates are to assist those in need. Our support takes many forms from fundraising to volunteering to providing emergency supplies needs. We also partner with many of these organizations providing them with their mechanical system maintenance at no cost. This enables them to allocate their funds where they are needed most, helping the people they serve.
On a personal level, I am a member of Project Search’s Business Advisory Council. Project Search is a program through SCE Lifeworks which helps students with developmental disabilities gain essential employability skills for their resumes with the goal to secure competitive employment.
Advice to women starting in the industry?
Find a mentor. Female, male, it matters not, as long as they have your best interests at heart. Find someone who has experiences to share and someone who will not hesitate to “hold up a mirror” to you. They will be there to provide guidance through the tough times, which will come. They will help you grow both professionally and personally and they will celebrate your successes.
Who was your best mentor?
My dad was/ is my best mentor. I would not be where I am today professionally if it wasn’t for my dad guiding me and pushing me to overcome the barriers woman have in this industry. I have always taken pride in my work ethic and working hard was taught to me by my dad at a young age. He taught me to work hard for the things I want and to not be disappointed and accept defeat if I didn’t get something on the first try.
Being a woman in the construction industry presents its own unique challenges everyday. I don’t think I get through a day without using a skill, lesson etc. my dad has taught me. My dad’s philosophy, words, beliefs, and overall approach to life are a great part of who I am today both personally and professionally. For all that and more is why he is my greatest mentor.
What is your current job and what do you love about it?
While I don’t work for a mechanical contractor, the majority of my career (19 years to be exact) has been entrenched in the mechanical contracting industry working on MCA Canada’s education portfolio. Over the last few years I have taken on several new projects which include the development of the Student Chapter program and our scholarship series which has grown substantially over the last year. The most recent addition to my portfolio is the development of the Women in Mechanical Contracting initiative. Each program has been full of many rewards. I have met so many amazing people from across Canada and have created lifelong friendships. I’m truly blessed with the opportunities and achievements that my career at MCAC has offered me.
If you could go back in time and give your younger self career advice, what would it be?
Be more confident, don’t settle for less than what you deserve! Get involved in committees…don’t be afraid to voice your opinion, your opinion matters and makes a difference!
What is the most unusual job you have ever had (in any industry)?
My background is in education. Directly out of University I taught grade 3 on a first nations reserve in New Brunswick for two years and spent the following three years substitute teaching in Ottawa. From there I instructed adults in computer technology prior to joining MCA Canada in 2000.
Who was your best mentor?
Working with so many different committee members/chairmen over the years has been an awesome opportunity. To see how much they believe in the industry, their time devoted to making it stronger and well represented is inspiring. Working for their own companies is not rewarding enough, they care about the industry and want to give back. They have all been mentors in one way or the other. Our retired CEO Richard McKeagan and past MCAC Chairman, Terry Billings, were the most influential in my association career development and taught me priceless advice that I use every day.
However, through the WIMC initiative, I am meeting so many inspiring women and can’t wait to learn from them!
How did you get your start in the mechanical contracting industry?
I worked for a General Contractor in Eastern Ontario. When my family moved to Southwestern Ontario, I was hired as a project coordinator directly on site with a well respected and large Mechanical Contractor working on two new Healthcare buildings. These projects provided the opportunity to gain a wealth of knowledge for the mechanical side of contracting. I’m currently a Senior Project Manager and have able to mentor new employees along with my regular duties within the company.
What is your current job and what do you love about it?
Currently I am an Account Executive with Aon. As the recommended insurance broker for the mechanicals, I am thrilled to be able to help sort issues with our clients. Insurance is never anyone’s favourite subject, but at least my clients know they have an excellent program in place to protect their businesses. I love working with contractors and have built extremely strong relationships with all. I have a fabulous team that cares just as much as I do about each and every client.
How did you get your start in the mechanical contracting industry?
I have a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from UBC and about 4 years of experience as an Estimator in the Architectural world after graduation. Then I decided it was time to move back to the Mechanical field while staying in the Construction Industry so that I could combine my education and work experience. I was very fortunate to be selected for an interview at Davidson Brothers Mechanical Contractors Ltd. and then hired full time. At Davidson Bros, I am not just an employee, but also I get a sense of being a part of a wonderful family who have been so kind to extend their support for my professional growth and career goals as well!
Who was my best mentor?
My dad! He always involved me in his handy work growing up and always showed me I could do anything I put my mind to. My dad is the best mentor you can ask for and the best friend you can have growing up. Even to this day he gets excited when I send him pictures of my plumbing jobs.
What do you currently do in your profession, and what aspects of it bring you joy?
In my capacity as the Manager of Membership Engagement and Marketing, my primary responsibilities involve overseeing and optimizing the engagement strategies for our members while also driving effective marketing initiatives. What brings me immense joy in this role is the alignment of everyone with a shared mission and vision. Collaborating with a team that shares common goals enhances the overall work experience, making it both enjoyable and fulfilling.
Past WIMC Committees
2019-2022 Committee
Chair
Julie Zulich, TESC Mechanical Contracting
Vice Chair
Judy-Lynn Mason, ServcoCanada
Committee Members
Jane Gowing, Black and McDonald
Jennifer Lowe, Lowe Mechanical
Jason Campbell, Aecon Industrial
Tania Johnston, MCA Canada
Nadine Fullarton, CANB, MCA NB
Dawn Ermen, Ermen Plumbing & Heating Ltd
Rachael Lolua, MCA Hamilton – Niagara