Rhian Evans- From high school teacher to construction IT specialiston running a business in construction
Mar 12, 2020
Rhian Evans, an Information Communication Technology consultant, joins us on this episode of the This is a Man’s World: She Who Dares Wins podcast. Rhian started out her adult life as a teacher before making a career move into the ICT area of the school construction industry. She is completely self-taught in the ICT business and she has found great success and fulfillment in this profession, even launching her own consultancy business 5 years ago.
She has pleasantly surprised with the industry overall and the increasing support that women on the job site are receiving, despite the negative and offensive experiences that have occurred as well. She is an advocate of implementing quotas in companies to ensure the optimal amount of diversity, both gender and cultural. With the increasing prevalence of the gender pay gap and #MeToo conversations in the world at large and in the construction industry in particular, Rhian believes that more women will be considered for positions that have typically been held by men and it will be more acceptable for young girls to aspire to careers in construction and the other trades as a result.
She encourages young girls and women alike to try out “non-traditional” careers in the hopes that some years down the road, all professions will be considered equally acceptable for both men and women. The more women that are out on the job site, the more girls will be inspired to follow in their footsteps. You never know if you will like the trades until you try.
Time Stamps:
0:48 – How Rhian got started in ICT work.
3:54 – Her transition from teaching into the construction industry.
5:58 – Advice for other women considering career changes.
8:01 – Making certain jobs more accessible to women.
10:03 – A discussion of quotas.
16:25 – Michelle’s experience in influencing her dad to hire more women in sales.
18:40 – The support for women in the industry doesn’t necessarily come from straight white men.
23:06 – How people react on site when they see women.
29:18 – Responding to verbal attacks or microaggressions.
31:07 – Practical steps for responding to mistreatment.
34:58 – Cultural differences Rhian has experienced.
39:57 – The benefit of experiencing other cultures.
44:49 – Advice for women considering getting into traditionally male dominated careers.
Key Quotes:
“I’ve had a massive learning curve because everything I do now I’ve basically taught myself.”
“Just by being there, we’re role models.”
“There are no men’s jobs and women’s jobs. There are just jobs.”
“Every company at some level benefits from diversity.”
“It’s too easy to hire someone just like you.”
“The construction industry is not going to get better unless women step up and go for the jobs.”
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