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Taylor employees, industry partners, clients and university students heard from an esteemed panel of women leaders in construction on their own personal experiences in the industry, centred on the 2022 #BreaktheBias theme. 

The panel, moderated by CEO of the Property Industry Foundation, Kate Mills, was focused on conversation between Alex O’Mara, Principal of the Sustainable Solutions Advisory, Kristine Marshall, Senior Project Manager, Taronga Conservation Society, Ziggy Napier, Head of Major Projects & Commercial, Sydney Opera House, and Taylor CEO George Bardas.  

Each panellist opened up about the hurdles and challenges they had faced and overcome in the workplace, offering advice to the 120 women and men in attendance. 

Covering topics such gender equity policies and industry targets, leadership and teamwork, and elevating the conversations beyond just women-focused events, the panel expressed their feelings: 

“Equal representation isn’t just an outcome it’s also a pre-requisite to actually achieving equity,” expressed Ziggy Napier.  

Kristine Marshall said: “We spend so much time with the people we work with, so we need to make sure we build positive relationships.” The panel agreed that collaborating with one’s team and understanding their balance of professional and personal priorities (particularly in a world with the pandemic, where work and home life cross so easily) is key to any meaningful and successful working relationship.  

Touching on parental policies and working with children, Alex O’Mara added: “We need to think of parenting as a couple’s responsibility, rather than a woman’s responsibility – that’s really a thing that is going to increase women’s participation in the workforce.” 

“One of the things that organisations can do is model that,” she explained.  

George Bardas weighed in, sharing: “Men are changing, and they are changing because they grew up in an environment where fathers were often the power figure; there is a bit of a generational gap to overcome, but I’m a firm believer that we are talking about things in the right way now and checking ourselves.    

“I’m hopeful that we’re moving in the right direction. I’m actually confident we are moving in the right direction, and I’m sure we will get there in 10 to 20 years.” 

Bringing the panel discussion to a close, Kate Mills said: “More women at the top is good, but lifting more women from the bottom is better – because when I think about International Women’s Day, I don’t necessarily think about the women in this room. I think about women who live in developing nations. I think about women who have experienced domestic violence. I think about women across the whole board who face disadvantage.”  

“How do we connect this conversation in here with that larger conversation out there? How can brands and corporations help?”  

The panel shared the following recommendations:  

• Set realistic and achievable targets and policies. If you don’t believe in them, nothing will happen. 
• Encourage men to take paternity and child-caring leave. 
• Be conscious of the decisions you make when hiring people, and decisions about project and role distributions; question your own potential bias. 
• Consider what your organisation can do to promote STEM education for women and girls.
• Review your ESG policies and ensure your diversity policies are best-practice.
• Create more part-time positions and job-share opportunities where possible. 

Concluding the discussion, George Bardas said: “To move forward together, we must educate ourselves and those around us. We all have a responsibility to take action on gender diversity in construction.”  

Taylor would like to thank the incredible panelists Alex, Kate, Kristine and Ziggy for sharing their stories and the lessons they have learned as female leaders in construction.

The 2021 National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) Awards for Excellence were held at Sydney’s ICC last night.

Warm Congratulations go to Robert Co’s Stephen Surjan on winning this important new NAWIC Award category.

The NAWIC Awards celebrate the contributions made by women at all career levels and in all sectors of the construction industry. 2021 is the first year to see an award category added to acknowledge a male champion of change for accelerating and advancing the interests of women in the industry.

Commenting on the Male Champion category, George Bardas said: “Gender equity is critical to the performance, growth, and wellbeing of Australia’s workforce. At Taylor, we’re committed to raising awareness of the challenges women face in our industry, taking positive action to redress the balance, and celebrating the multi-talented women breaking new ground in property and construction. I am honoured to be a part of a committed and supportive male champion cohort within our industry.”

As an advocate for women in construction, George has spent his 30-year career working to better the representation of women at all levels. He has not only mentored and advocated for women, from cadets to senior executives, he has gained thoughtful and original insights from his mentees in return.

As an Adjunct Fellow of Built Environment & Construction Management at Western Sydney University, George worked with the University to design and implement a new Bachelor of Building Design Management Program (BBDM). This course aims to increase the diversity of the student intake to construction and building programs and provide an alternative and flexible stream for young professional graduates.

“To attract and retain women in construction, we need to increase interest and engagement with STEM studies, and we need to create a steady flow of work-ready female graduates,” George said.

“I take my responsibilities as a CEO and industry leader very seriously when it comes to gender diversity. Leaders in our industry have a duty to help implement educational programs and workplace strategies to inspire girls and women in STEM and increase access to industry networks for women in construction.”

Looking to the future, George believes that men in construction have a vital role to play in achieving gender equity.

“Real change cannot be brought about without the engagement and contribution of men in our industry.  We’re proud that an increasing number of men have participated in our industry-leading engagement program, Taylor Women in Construction (TWIC). Through TWIC, we work together to strengthen internal and industry connections for all female team members across all levels of the business.

“We will only have succeeded when Awards such as this are no longer needed and gender equity is achieved within all ‘business as usual’ work practices, for all gender identities, across Australia.”

One of Taylor’s four guiding Principles is Diversity. We harness diversity of thought to create innovative solutions for our clients. To support this, we foster a culture of inclusion and equality in the knowledge that doing so provides broader perspectives, better working environments, and stronger business outcomes for everyone.

Taylor is committed to championing diversity and inclusion, and sharing targets to hold the business accountable over time. Taylor targets include:

• Increasing female representation at Taylor to 30% by 2026. (Currently 17%)
• Ensuring over 50% of women at Taylor hold rewarding site-based construction roles.
• Committing to a 50% annual female cadet intake.

Today, over 53% of women at Taylor work in rewarding site-based roles. We’re proud that this measure exceeds the industry average of 33%.

“I have experienced first-hand how the diversity of thought and leadership styles from women entering the construction and property sector has improved and enriched our industry. The attraction and retention of women to one of Australia’s most heavily male-dominated sectors, are certainly issues that require new ways of thinking, and innovative approaches to increasing women’s participation, but we are striving every day at Taylor to try and address this through our targets and initiatives,” said George.

Taylor continues to build engagement with NAWIC, with Jessica Evans appointment to the Board of Directors and this recognition being just the beginning.

Congratulations to George on this acknowledgement of his continuing efforts toward gender equity in construction.

Expanding Taylor’s capacity to deliver large-scale industrial projects, Jerry is responsible for leading our Industrial division’s strategic operations. As our Industrial business unit has grown over the last year, we have remained focused on achieving certainty in delivery and commercial value for our clients. Jerry’s appointment continues this commitment.

Jerry is an established and well-respected leader in the development and construction industry with over 20 years’ experience in delivering complex, cutting-edge industrial facilities. Prior to joining Taylor, Jerry worked for Hansen Yuncken and Walker Corporation. He has demonstrated excellence in delivery across a diverse client base including; Qube, Goodman, Dexus, ESR, Frasers, Aliro, Property Link, Altis, AMP, Stockland, Wesfarmers, Mirvac.

In line with our culture, Jerry places a priority on sustainable practices in construction and ensuring a Zero Harm approach to Work Health, Safety and Environment. He has a background in design and a track record of applying innovative solutions and value management principles to achieving a project’s vision. His strong commercial capabilities give Jerry the edge to consistently achieve client and project satisfaction by delivering effective commercial outcomes for all parties.

As one of NSW’s leading construction delivery partners, Taylor provides construction services across all sectors and delivers a diverse range of projects across all forms of delivery models. Our dedicated Industrial division has significant experience in the delivery of logistics park and industrial facility projects, having delivered major projects for some of Australia’s leading Real Estate Investment Trusts including Stockland, GPT, Charter Hall, Goodman, and Fife Capital.

We work closely with our clients, supporting them through the due diligence period on new sites. Along with pre-lease cost planning and design advice, we also facilitate any DA and authority approvals required to enable the construction of a project.

Jerry’s appointment will ensure Taylor continues in our vision to be a reliable, first-choice partner to our clients.

George Bardas
Chief Executive Officer

On Friday six of our Taylor sites hosted BBQs to support the Property Industry Foundation’s Hard Hat Day and raise funds for homeless youth. Teams got together to enjoy a hearty lunch collectively raising more than $18,000 towards this great cause.

Thank you to all the companies and individuals who pledged donations to our page. Taylor would also like to thank our incredible site teams and partners, each BBQ would not have been possible without the generous support of our sponsors.

Goodman and Taylor | Australia welcomed Leslie McLeod, a Yuin, Dharawal and Ngarigo custodian and loreman and Daniel Ella, a Yuin, Dharawal loreman and firekeeper to perform the smoking ceremony at Proximity@Botany, in which the site and team were smoked and cleansed, and a perimeter walk was conducted to protect the site. Afterwards the team enjoyed a delicious Koori Fusion experience with Jo from Goanna Hut . Thank you for a reflective and rewarding morning for all involved.

Proximity@Botany is a brand new 5.7 hectare industrial development offering modern warehouse and office spaces in the heart of Banksmeadow. The facility comprises 31,000sqm of high-quality space with the flexibility to split into smaller units from 3,000sqm. Other key features include on-grade and recessed docks, 45m heavy duty hardstand, solar PV array for each tenancy, ESFR sprinklers, LED lighting and 15m wide awning for all-weather loading.

Minister for Water, Property, and Housing, The Hon. Melinda Pavey MP, joined the event to announce the $16 million social housing development that will be delivered by Taylor.  This new development will deliver more than 40 social housing homes as part of the NSW Government’s ongoing commitment to social housing in Western Sydney. Due for completion in the second half of 2022, Team Taylor looks forward to delivering this high-quality project that will provide 65 people in need with a place to call home. 

Stockland CEO Tarun Gupta was joined by the Hon. Victor Dominello MP, NSW Minister for Digital and Customer Service for a tour of the flagship technology and life sciences precinct.

Team Taylor is excited to deliver this important project for the community that is designed to bring people together in a flexible space, designed around the principles of Collaboration and Wellbeing.