Articles | Futureproofing the Civil Infrastructure Industry: Dive

 

 

 

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Futureproofing the Civil Infrastructure Industry: Diversity and Inclusion

Leaders and managers in the Civil Infrastructure Industry face people management challenges due to diversity issues. To be successful it is essential that team leaders understand the value of diverse teams and how to get the best from their teams.

Critical challenges

The genesis of this is that the boom in Australian infrastructure faces critical challenges: 1) shortage in several occupations, such as Engineers 2) Lack of people skills in both specialist and trade and labour 3) Gender inequity.

To make up for shortages, overseas migrant workers are being hired. In fact, 58% of Engineers are from overseas. As a result, ethnically and racially diverse workers are part of the industry that must make the best use of this talent.

On the other hand, the industry does not utilise female talent sufficiently: women make up less than 13% of construction occupations, less than 2% related trade jobs, and only ~11% of working engineers.

 

Why does diversity matter for the Civil Infrastructure Industry?

At a micro level racially diverse teams and those with gender balance perform better in decision making, problem solving and innovation. This helps in better design, implementation and completion of projects.

At a macro level these benefits add up: diverse organisations attract 20-40 more customers in comparison to non-diverse competitors and, outperform their peers by 25-36%.

A culture of inclusion increases positive perception of team and company leadership, with employees 3 times less likely to leave the organisation.

Looking to the future, 83% of GenZs prioritise the diversity and inclusion commitment of companies when identifying employers of choice.     

 

What are the implications of these trends for the Civil Infrastructure Industry?

There is a significant cultural shift required at workplaces for gender equity and each organisation must be responsible, accountable for a non-discriminatory workplace culture as outlined in Women in STEM Decadal plan published by the Australian Academy of Science.

Providing managers and leaders with knowledge, skills and tools on managing diverse teams and creating an inclusive culture is imperative to enable the workplace shift the industry needs.

The good news

The good news is that leadership and people management skills such as managing diverse teams can be learned in a short time. Focused professional development courses on diversity and inclusion, provide a grounding on these topics, along with practical tips and tools to implement the learning at the workplace.

Sign up today to a course on diversity and inclusion and make a difference to your management style!

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