What does your role entail?
The Alliance HR Manager role is an Alliance Management Team (AMT) position partnering with the business to deliver on our commitment to the client (LXRP) and our community via our people. We do this by ensuring we align & adapt to the company strategy, the client’s strategy and the market trends and have the right people, at the right time in the right roles. Aiming to represent the community we serve, the role plays a key part in ensuring that we are growing a diverse and inclusive culture.
How did you navigate your career?
I’ve had about 3 careers so far: I started in HR, moved into Lean & Continuous Improvement, then into Asset Management and then again back into HR. I’ve always had mentors, coaches and trusted colleagues who I’ve reached out to for guidance & feedback and I also trusted when people saw something in me that I didn’t understand at that point it time. Taking a leap often determined my career choices and I am a big believer that change is beneficial: I’ve either learned what I like or what I didn’t like, either way it’s been helpful!
What has been your career highlight?
Having the opportunity to build the HR function in my previous role and redefine the brand and value add with the business. It’s a rare opportunity to build a team from scratch and working in the LX space allowed for many opportunities to feel like we’re genuinely making a difference. I’ve found purpose in my role especially around the work we did on bridging the gap between asylum seekers & refugees and the industry.
What has been your biggest challenge?
Transition into a new career (like moving into Asset Management, a predominantly engineering function) or tackling a new opportunity (like building the team in my previous role from scratch) were both tough at first as they both entailed demonstrating value when people already had an expectation of me ( either because I wasn’t an engineer , so what could I know about Asset Management ? or because HR had a bad reputation in the past , so I must not understand the business either).
What do you think is the most important change happening in the construction industry?
Little tricky to assess as its week 1 in the construction industry, but if I look at the wider industry and our competitors: the market is very tight in terms of talent so adapting our approach in how we can get the best people, retain and develop them while everyone else around has the same challenge will be a big one. Expanding our “ideal candidate” definition will be essential in order to succeed and differentiate ourselves in the market.
What would be your one piece of advice for other women aspiring to progress in the construction industry?
Again, I can’t comment much on what are the specific challenges of the construction industry, so my recommendation probably comes from my experience in the rail industry which has come a long way but also has a long way to go in this space.
There’s an accountability that the wider industry and each company have to ensure the right framework is in place to ensure fair and equitable processes and initiatives that support all employees, irrespective of gender & background, to put their best foot forward: it’s the right thing to do and its good for business!
Irrespective of gender I would give everyone the same advice: take accountability for your career, be genuine and clear about where you’re at & what support you need to ensure you enjoy what you’re doing.
What are your aspirations for the future?
I’ve never really had an ideal career pathway in mind, but I will continue to put my hand up / create the opportunities that align with my personal values and which will give me the chance to make a difference through my work.