To celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8th, 2021, we asked our female team members what advice they’d give to younger women who wish to join our industry. Here’s a sampling of what some of them had to say…
Growth and comfort don’t coexist. Work hard, have a little courage, and never stop getting better.
-Whitney Maynard, PE, Director of Professional Development
Networking and creating meaningful relationships is an excellent first step to help progress your career and continue to achieve higher positions. Don’t fear being uncomfortable. Get outside of your comfort zone and be a trailblazer for other women to follow in your footsteps. Push past gender stereotypes within STEM fields because women provide a unique perspective to ‘solve the problem that matter’ as we say at Pickett.
-Jacquelyn Beccue, Project Controls Specialist
You have special talents and gifts that are unique to you. Let your light shine in the workplace. You’ll add something only you could add to the mix & encourage others to do the same.
–Jane Cabrera, Accounts Receivable Specialist
With success comes challenge, learn to take it head-on. When I was starting out my career, I was always actively seeking a mentor or role model to guide me. I didn’t find one, so I strive to be the one I needed every step of the way.
-Neveen Dick, GIS Developer
Don’t be afraid to pull up your sleeves and get your hands dirty and never, ever do the bare minimum. Passion and hard work will take you places.
-Katie Nickel, Business Operations Manager
Be you. Don’t lose who you are. Everyone brings some unique talents to every job.
-Kathy Beaman, PE, Transmission Line Lead
Find what works, copy it, adapt it as necessary. And have some fun with the process.
-Amanda Guers, Senior GIS Analyst
I would say that it’s vital to find ‘work’ or a ‘job’ that inspires you to put forth genuine, heartfelt effort. Effort beyond what might come naturally, like raw talent. You should always be looking for opportunities to continually challenge yourself. Nothing worth doing should be a cake-walk. It’s easy to do what you’re good at. It’s hard to be open to doing things that you aren’t so good at, even harder to stay committed to those things. But more often than not, those things tend to be what deliver the greatest reward. Take effort & commitment and add a good sense of humor and some humility – and you’ll get where you want to go.
-Kathryn Cyr, Talent Acquisition & Team Member Relations Specialist
As theory and tools evolve in the Project Management field, always challenge yourself to learn more and lead with integrity, honesty, and equality. Own and hold yourself accountable for your failures or mistakes, as they will only prove to provide positive growth through lessons learned. Eagerly and vocally share accomplishments with the team that provided effort in the positive success of a project or endeavor.
-Andrea Brewer, Senior Project Controls Specialist
Ask all the questions! It’s okay not to know what you don’t know – never stop learning. In that same regard, always be confident in what you do know. Never second guess yourself!
-Nicole Siracusa, Marketing & Communications Lead
I grew up very poor, so it wasn’t easy to get to where I am today. I really had to work for it. So, with that, I kind of live by the three P’s. Patience, Persistence and Perseverance. It’s important to embody those things when you’re going after what you want in life – especially career related goals. Also, something to remember: without struggle there’s likely not much progress.
– Jen Perkins, Talent Acquisition Lead