As a founding partner of Tomorrow’s Women in Construction (TWIC), RP Infrastructure is committed to helping create stronger pathways for young women to explore careers across construction, property and infrastructure.
As part of this commitment, our Sydney team recently welcomed Zoya Shaikh to RP Infrastructure for a week of work experience through the TWIC program.
The program provides young women with practical and engaging exposure to the industry, helping them better understand the breadth of careers available and giving them opportunities to hear directly from people working in different roles, across different disciplines and teams.
A week inside the industry
Throughout the week, Zoya had the opportunity to learn from experts across different areas of the business, including spending time with our Marketing & Finance teams, as well as our project teams, from Assistant Project Managers to Executive Director level.
This gave her a broader view of how the different parts of our business work together behind the scenes to support our project teams and keep projects moving smoothly.
For Zoya, hearing directly from people working in different roles — and learning about their own career journeys — was one of the highlights of the experience.
“My favourite part of the experience was being able to hear from so many different people, understand some of the challenges they have faced, learn about their roles and get advice and tips about the industry,” Zoya said.
The week also gave her a greater appreciation of the thinking, planning and collaboration involved in bringing projects to life.
“This week showed me the amount of thinking and planning that goes into building something and the interconnections between different teams. It showed me the importance of each role and the opportunities that are out there.”
Taking learning onto site
One of the highlights of the week was a visit to UNSW, where Zoya joined one of our teams for a tender inspection at the UNSW Australian Graduate School of Management.
RP Infrastructure is providing Project Management services on two levels of the UNSW Australian Graduate School of Management building. Joe Wood and Cormac McCartan led the inspection for our team, Zoya and the nominated tenderers, giving Zoya the opportunity to see first-hand how consultants, contractors and clients interact during the procurement and delivery process.
It was also an opportunity to step away from the desk and share some of the practical aspects of project delivery with someone considering where a career in the industry could take them.
Building pathways for women in construction
RP Infrastructure became a founding partner of Tomorrow’s Women in Construction to help create clearer pathways for women to explore and pursue careers in the industry.
Providing young women with visibility of the many careers available across construction, project management, quantity surveying, commercial management and infrastructure helps challenge traditional perceptions of the industry and creates clearer pathways into it.
Zoya said the experience had opened her eyes to the range of opportunities available.
“There are many opportunities for women and they are only growing, so it excites me to see the variety of roles and opportunities out there.”
Her advice to other young women considering the TWIC program is simple:
“Definitely do it. It gives you a better understanding of the opportunities available, and you get to meet a lot of hardworking and passionate people.”
We were delighted to have Zoya spend the week with us and thank everyone across RP Infrastructure who took the time to share their experience, advice and enthusiasm for the industry.
Through our ongoing partnership with TWIC, we look forward to continuing to support the next generation of women to discover the opportunities a career in construction and infrastructure can offer.