Portraits of Leadership
Georgia women redefine the face of construction
Construction has long been a male-dominated industry, often passed from generation to generation, father to son. And while great strides have been made in expanding opportunities for people from all walks of life, regardless of gender, the number of women in the profession remains low. In the U.S., only about 9 percent of the construction workforce today is women, around 939,000, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
While the largest percentage of women in the build space work in sales and office occupations (45 percent), nearly one-third (31 percent) are professionals and another 21 percent in the natural resources, construction and maintenance category (e.g., energy, water) with much smaller numbers of women in field-based labor occupations.
The reasons why more women aren’t in this trillion-dollar global industry are varied, ranging from lack of interest and a misconception about skill sets required to fear of working in a traditional “man’s world” and a lack of awareness. Thanks to increased advocacy and, frankly, a mounting workforce shortage, those numbers are beginning to rise.
Women are increasingly taking on roles and responsibilities as owners and top executives as well as project managers, superintendents and tradespeople.
Key to maintaining momentum will be education, opportunity and role models—a challenge a few Georgia women in construction are taking to heart. How these women got started, their leadership in business and community, and their passion for the built world are already opening doors for the next generation of women in construction.
Creating Opportunity
Betsy Ritch-Reed’s story is not unlike that of many men who got their start in the construction business.
Ritch-Reed is the second-generation owner of Columbus-based Ritch Electric Co., Inc., a company her father started in 1968. At the age of 19, with no defined career plans, she started working for her dad, which led to the electrician’s apprenticeship program, field management and, eventually, president of the company.
“Even with my father as a construction business founder and owner, I had no idea of the opportunities and challenges in this world,” confesses Ritch-Reed, when asked how she got into the business. Now she’s working to open doors for others who might also find a career path that suits their perhaps hidden talents.
As a way to share her excitement, Ritch-Reed is working with several organizations—including the Independent Electrical Contractors, Greater Columbus Home Builders Association and the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) Atlanta—to find ways to excite a new generation of workers.
She adds, “Through NAWIC, I’ve had an opportunity to share my love of construction with young girls through programs such as the Block Kids Building Competition, a national competition designed to excite elementary-age kids about the construction industry.”
NAWIC is also the platform that helped Angela R. Brown, CEO of Douglasville, Georgia-based Angela R. Brown Construction, LLC, to get her start. Brown met her mentor, Nancy Juneau, CEO of Juneau Construction Company and 30-plus-year veteran of the construction industry, at a NAWIC Atlanta event. She later joined the organization as a way to meet inspiring women—and also to possibly get involved in the community. (See more about Brown’s quest for inclusivity in the industry later in this publication.)
Cellini D. Parker is among the newer faces of construction in Georgia. Founder of The Concrete Lady LLC in 2014, Cellini went from property management to concrete contractor because she recognized a need in the industry to help young people gain a skill. Her vision is to establish a training center as part of her company where any individual, male or female, can learn about concrete, from mix ratios to forming and finishing.
“Anyone can make a good living in the construction industry, if they’re willing to work hard and learn,” Parker says. “My goal is to help my employees build a career and a quality life in the community. Too often, employees, especially labor, are just a number. As an owner, I believe it’s my job to care about my people beyond the job.”
“I encourage any young woman who has an interest in the industry to find one of us featured in this story or another woman in construction and ask questions or ask for help through mentoring.” Betsy Ritch-Reed, President, Ritch Electric Co., Inc.
Fostering Careers
Beth Warbington, co-owner of B&R Painting Contractors, Inc. in Lithonia, a city outside Atlanta, drew on her father’s experiences as a union electrician to help build her commercial construction painting business. In 1988, she was working as an accountant for a downtown law firm when she met her soon-to-be husband, Rickey, a professional painter with a dream of owning his own business. The two put their heads together and began advertising, taking on jobs, largely residential, as they became available.
“My focus was to help build the operational side of the business with my father’s lessons repeating in my head,” she says. “He always said do the best you can do and deliver what you promise.”
It also required Warbington to step through a significant learning curve. “When we started, I knew nothing about contracts, estimating, takeoffs or how to read blueprints,” she explains. But I was pretty good with numbers and had a desire to succeed and a willingness to learn. That’s really all it takes. There’s a misconception in the industry that you have to work outdoors to work in construction. Some women (and men) may not want to haul heavy paint buckets, but construction is more than work boots and hard hats.”
Today, B&R Painting includes an office staff of five and 50-plus painters in the field. The thriving business employs mostly family and friends, men and women who have learned the business from the ground up. Warbington sees herself as a mentor for her employees, adding, “Beyond running the operational side of the business, my job is to support my guys (her employees), and provide guidance and education as needed. I can’t save the world, but I can help one person at a time have a fulfilling career. Construction is a relationship business, and the best businesses strengthen relationships with partners, employees and customers. I believe women are particularly good at relationships and organizational activities.”
A Hand Up
Kristen Williams is taking a similar path through hands-on activities in the community. Williams is a second-generation owner of Penco Electrical Contractors Inc., a company her father founded in 1983. She fell into her father’s business in her early 20s—and found her passion. Like Ritch-Reed, she went through the apprenticeship program, which eventually led to becoming president of the Morrow-based company.
Beyond her day-to-day operational responsibilities, Williams is a keen and passionate advocate of workforce opportunities. Case-in-point, Penco’s Williams met India Bryant Briton, a junior from Griffin High School in the city of Griffin at a SkillsUSA event. Briton placed in the electrical competition and her reward was a one-year IEC Electrical Apprenticeship Program scholarship. The offer also includes an electrical apprenticeship with an electrical contractor like Penco in 2018, and the possibility of a continued scholarship for the entire course of study.
Williams confirms, “As long as she’s going to school, I’ll pay for her apprenticeship. My message to anyone, male or female, interested in the apprenticeship program is that if you want to work for me, we’ll do our best to make a place for you.”
Penco currently has four women in the field as electricians and one of those women is training to be a foreman. She’s also seeing more women general contractors and project managers—all jobs that she believes women are uniquely equipped to perform. </>
Like Warbington, Williams believes that the detail-oriented job of a project manager is the perfect job for a woman. “Most women are skilled multi-taskers so we’re naturally inclined to a methodical way of thinking,” she adds.
Building the Brand
While each of the women highlighted has a unique story about how they got into the industry, they all have a common goal to change the status quo. They’re inspiring other women, building excitement in young people, offering a helping hand to those willing to work and, along the way, shaping a more diverse construction world throughout the state of Georgia.
“I encourage any young woman who has an interest in the industry to find one of us featured in this story or another woman in construction and ask questions or ask for help through mentoring,” Ritch-Reed adds. “We’re here and ready to help!”
As Jenny Horton, the 2018 Associated General Contractors (AGC) of Georgia, Inc. Volunteer of the Year, President of Collins and Arnold Construction Company, LLC, and passionate workforce development advocate, notes, “I’m often asked how did you make it in a male-dominated industry? My response is always, ‘I’m not here because I’m a woman. I’m here because I did the best job that I could every time I was given a task.’ Anytime I have the opportunity to talk to young women about construction, I tell them, ‘If I can do this, you can do this.’ ”