July 2022
Many of you may have seen a recent message announcing promotions during this last quarter. It was a particularly impressive list. And not to diminish any of the other’s accomplishments, but what really stood out was the fact that we had two women promoted to Project Managers.
McGuire and Hester has the honor of Dulce Bugarin and Shannon Saliba accepting the role as our very first female Project Managers. They have risen through our ranks entirely on their own merit and, in fact, have most certainly been subjected to more societal obstacles in the workplace and elsewhere on their journey to get here versus their male counterparts. I, for one, am extremely proud of their achievement.
I truly believe that McGuire and Hester makes a concerted effort to be inclusive regardless of sex, race, or whatever, but with that in mind, it’s a bit concerning when we just now have our first female project managers after almost 100 years of being in business. I can’t help but feel that we and our industry could be doing a much better job with this. During this past year, we also saw two very intelligent and capable female Project Engineer employees leave us. I know that they both came to the conclusion that construction was not where their heart was. Still, we should, nonetheless, think hard about what we all can do to make our industry and McGuire and Hester specifically more welcoming and a place where any female can imagine spending their career. We just have to look at our current male-to-female ratio to see we are still incredibly far from that, whether it be at the crafts or the management level.
So again, it is very important to recognize what Dulce and Shannon have accomplished, and not to put too much pressure on them, but they now carry a torch that lights a more obvious path other females can and will follow. McGuire and Hester has no room to pat themselves on the back for helping them accomplish this as the burden has been on them. They have defined themselves and earned the respect they deserve. I am so appreciative of what they have done and the doors they have opened for others to follow. McGuire and Hester has so much to gain not just from what these two bring to the table and their capabilities as managers but also from what this can mean to the vision and growth of future female employees. Our arena just grew, and I just want to personally thank Shannon and Dulce for making this happen. Let us continually remind ourselves of the benefits we all gain working with quality people such as these two and make an effort every day to make this a place where others like them can similarly thrive.
Brock Grunt