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ELEVATEHER ADVISORS
MARCIA ALVARADO; STRUCTURAL PROJECT MANAGER; TRC WORLDWIDE ENGINEERING, INC. Alvarado provides a unique combination of engineering and BIM coordination to TRC Worldwide Engineering’s operations in the Florida geographic regions and throughout the U.S. She also serves as president of the ACE Mentor Program of Greater Tampa Bay. The AEC focused program has raised more than $100,000 in scholarships for high school students to further their education in the college and apprenticeship tracks. Alvarado also serves on the Leadership Tampa Bay Board of Directors, and assists with marketing and social media efforts for the organization.
BERNICE BAKO; DIRECTOR OF MARKETING FOR GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT; TURNER CONSTRUCTION COMPANY After 30 years in the marketing profession working with engineers, Bako truly describes herself as right and left brained – she gets excited about a spreadsheet as much as a video editing session. An MBA, she has spent 25 years at Turner Construction Company as the Director of Marketing for Global Development working with construction and supply chain teams to grow new markets and business opportunities.
STEVE LUCY; CEO/PARTNER; JQ ENGINEERING As co-founder of the Dallas branch in 1994, Lucy serves as JQ’s CEO. With a significant portfolio of structural projects with varying project delivery methods over nearly three decades, Lucy guides clients through all stages of a project, from inception to completion. As CEO, his role includes recruiting and retention — which starts by attracting skilled and savvy engineers and helping them evolve as creative problem solvers who excel at delivering JQ’s signature style of client service.
TINA MYERS; DEPUTY CEO; SMPS Myers is responsible for SMPS’s operations, governance, human resources, programs, and overall management of staff. She is also responsible for implementation of policies and programs established by the board of directors and ensuring the alignment of programs with the Society’s Strategic Plan. She works directly with all SMPS chapters ensuring sound management and governance practices.She has over 29 years of experience in association management ranging from governance and human resource management to membership and marketing and chapter component relations.
LAURA NICK; CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS LEADER; GARVER As Garver’s Corporate Communications Leader, Nick leads the in-house communications team charged with all facets of branding, strategic marketing, and internal communications. Since joining the firm in 2011, she created the firm’s competitive recruitment program; developed GarverGives, the company’s employee-driven charitable giving program that prioritizes STEM partnerships; and is currently spearheading Garver’s centennial year celebration, which includes hosting all of Garver’s 650 employees in its founding city of Little Rock in October 2019.
SPONSORS
as members of a smaller project group with a focused topic or problem they would work on together over the proceeding months, and an end goal of a focused deliverable designed to be shared with the rest of the industry at Zweig Group’s ElevateHer Symposium and Elevate AEC conference. Project topics ran the gamut, and included methods to support individuals in the industry at all stages and phases of their life, addressing conflict and implicit biases, designing career paths, awarding and incentivizing diverse projects and firms, and much more. We picked a hell of a year to launch this program. As we wrapped up the initial in- person meetings, COVID-19 hit the U.S., and for many, these in-person meetings were some of the last work-related travel and networking opportunities to be had for a long time. This new challenge created a completely different set of circumstances to navigate and overcome, but for many highlighted the importance of an initiative such as ElevateHer. Luckily, with the geographic diversity present in each of these project groups, the collaboration was designed to be virtual. Over the next few months project teams met on their own, with Zweig Group team members, and with other industry stakeholders to design a product, idea, or process, and presentation to present JAMIE CLAIRE KISER & CHRISTINA ZWEIG NIEHUES, from page 7
at the inaugural ElevateHer Symposium (now virtual). In addition to these projects Zweig Group delivered books, facilitated discussions and a book club, and provided educational resources including presentation training to all cohort members. Project presentations will commence in early October and, because the symposium is virtual, are open to all who want to attend. These new ideas are designed to tackle specific issues identified as problems or obstacles to recruitment and retention of every individual in the industry, and are sure to provide actionable solutions that will assist in Zweig Group’s overall mission – to Elevate the AEC Industry. ElevateHer is about the future of the AEC industry and Zweig Group’s commitment to embrace, promote, and ensure equal opportunities for everyone regardless of gender, race, age, sexual orientation, or ethnicity. There is a real opportunity to build teams with the best and brightest talent if we can come together to create cultures that foster all careers. The role of gender and what it means to be a woman in an AEC firm is a complex, changing, and highly charged topic. And it’s one that has to be discussed as a question of survival for our industry. JAMIE CLAIRE KISER is managing principal and director of advisory services at Zweig Group. CHRISTINA ZWEIG NIEHUES is director of marketing and media at Zweig Group. Contact them at jkiser@ zweiggroup.com and czweig@zweiggroup.com.
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THE ZWEIG LETTER AUGUST 24, 2020, ISSUE 1358
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