WOMEN IN CONSTRUCTION
KWIC steering committee member Justine Lentini is also a member of Women in Deep
Foundations (WiDF), a committee of the Deep Foundations Institute. That is just one of the
organizations partnered with Keller Women in Construction.
Photo courtesy keller
conversations about challenges, resources
and mentoring for women in construction.
Technology has been key to spreading
the word about KWIC. Various resources
are posted on Keller’s SharePoint
site, including recommendations for
professional organizations that support
women in construction. There’s also a
separate Microsoft Teams group for Keller’s
women employees.
Oseni says that KWIC works closely
with the HR department at Keller North
America on a number of fronts.
“We want to make sure new female
hires are made aware of KWIC,” she said.
“Also, where possible, interviewing panels
include at least one woman. This assures
female applicants of Keller’s commitment
to including women in important aspects
of the business. Members of the KWIC
committee are also assisting HR in
reviewing job descriptions to ensure they
are more gender neutral, and inclusive to
both men and women.”
When in-person college job fairs resume,
Oseni says Keller will be sending more
women representatives. The company has
also engaged with different post-secondary
student organizations to provide resources
or participate in events focused on women.
“That area is near and dear to me,” she
added, explaining that she herself learned
about career opportunities in construction
through a group that visited her school.
“We are working with HR and we are
tracking certain KPIs (key performance
indicators),” said Oseni. “How many women
are applying, how many are being offered
positions, how many are coming on board?
We are also getting feedback from the
women who decide not to come to Keller –
why not? That is useful feedback for HR to
reveal where improvements can be made.”
Connections and conversations
Perhaps one of KWIC’s most exciting
initiatives is a company-wide mentorship
program that should be up and running
by mid-year, facilitating networking
throughout the organization.
“One reaction that really touches me
is from the women who felt they were
working in isolated silos,” said Oseni.
“Especially women in the field who may
not have another woman to connect to. Our
progress is measured more by connections
and conversations. Even as a large company
with many offices, people can still tap
into the KWIC network no matter where
they are.”
While KWIC represents all women at
Keller North America, the group has inspired
other women to start similar groups at the
company’s international divisions.
“I’m hoping to push professional
development within our space,” said Oseni.
“We have women who are new to the
profession and women who have worked
for Keller for 30 years. We want to make
sure everyone is up to speed on what’s going
on in their areas and taking advantage of
professional development opportunities.
Then we can select from qualified internal
candidates when we have openings.”
The key to KWIC’s success, concluded
Oseni, is the group’s productive partnerships
with other departments at Keller, such as
HR and senior leadership.
“The steering committee has sponsors
who we are accountable to. We not only
provide senior management with regular
feedback, but also meet with them twice
a year to present what we’ve done and get
their input. They ask how they can support
us to move forward.
“We are holding them accountable
and they are also holding us accountable.
It works.” t
The KWIC program was initiated by Joy Oseni,
an eight-year Keller North America employee
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