International Women’s Day 2023: How Females Make A Company
This International Women’s Day, we celebrate the various ways that women support industry, their companies and the expansion of roles.
We chat with Vanessa about women in leadership, Tamara about balancing work and family, Vivian about championing a team in the background, Sally about women in data and Susan about being a female cadet.
We hope you enjoy their stories as much as we do.
Table of Contents
Meet Vanessa: Women in leadership
I’m Vanessa, the Administration Team Leader for the Essential Safety Measures team.
I have over 10 years of experience in administration, hospitality, client management, health services, sports and recreation and building consulting.
I view management as a role of responsibility, towards the company of course, but more so to my team. The way I see it, I work for my team not the other way around.
I believe it’s important to maintain a supportive and inclusive environment – for men and women – where open communication is encouraged. By doing so, creating a workplace where people feel comfortable and valued. I also think it’s important to invest time and resources in the team’s professional growth which contributes to both the individual and the company’s success.
If you have a communicative, fulfilled and engaged team, there is no limit to what can be achieved collectively.
Meet Tamara: Balancing work and family
I’m Tamara, one of Hendry’s Senior Building Surveyors in the Building Surveying team.
I am licensed as a Building Surveyor by the Queensland Building Construction Commission, with endorsement as a Private Certifier – Level 1. I’ve been providing building surveying services for over 10 years.
Having a child enter the schooling system, a 1-year-old, a neglected husband and a very overwhelmed and busy mind, I needed to make a change from the job I was in and make my family the priority.
Finding a company that allowed and understood the flexibility required to be a present parent and maintain a career was not exactly easy. However, finding the right employer is vital when you have small children. The stress that you enter as a family when trying to juggle work and home commitments is extreme and the negative impacts the wrong work environment can have on your family could be detrimental.
Fast forward 12 months, having the ability to work from home, I am now able to be at home when my children wake up in the morning, go to the gym (something that is important for my mental health), take them to daycare and before school care and be home – all before 7.30 am. I can attend my son’s school events and make up the time outside of hours how it suits me, ensuring my employer and I get the best of both worlds. Something I thought was unachievable previously.
I thought, ‘How on earth can a parent like me with a stressful career in a demanding professional industry maintain my identity outside of home, be the supportive wife I promised to be and be the parent my children need? It’s just too much and there are too many hats to wear.’ I seriously considered if this was the right career for me at this time in my life. I’d completed 9 years at university, and I didn’t want to turn my back on that.
I’ve now discovered that I don’t have to. It is possible to have a career and be a present parent too.
Meet Sally: Women in data
I’m Sally, the Senior Project Manager for Digital Transformation at Hendry.
I have had a long career in varied roles, but the major thread has been tech and data, a male dominated sector. This began in the late eighties as part of a team introducing the first computerisation of the Magistrates Courts system in Victoria.
I was lucky to be of an age where I rode the wave of technical innovation and now find myself dreaming big for Hendry to improve access to information and data, and improve processes, to help our team efficiently keep client’s staff safe and buildings viable.
I am lucky in that I have never found my gender to be an obstacle in my career. This International Women’s Day I feel thankful that we live in a society where women can have great careers and are increasingly accepted in formerly male dominated roles.
Meet Susan: Female cadetship
I’m Susan, a Cadet Building Surveyor and Project Administration Assistant in our Building Surveying team.
I’m passionate about sustainability and fire safety in buildings and I’m constantly developing new skills and knowledge to enhance my experience in building surveying.
In June 2021, I was completely new to the industry and Hendry was my first role in building surveying. I started working with the admin team to build the foundation I needed and learn the processes surveyors go through when handling projects. Then I got exposure to other projects.
My experience has been great. I enjoy working here. It’s a great industry to work in and you just learn as you go. I hope to get my building surveyor limited license within the next 5 years.
Meet Vivian: Championing a team
I’m Vivian, Hendry’s Financial Accountant and AP Supervisor in the finance team.
As a female accountant at Hendry, I have plenty of chances to provide a variety of services to support our team and business. From preparing financial statements, reports and budgets to processing invoicing and whole group payroll.
Additionally, my role as supervisor gives me the opportunity to guide and supervise accounting clerical staffs.
I also have the opportunity to challenge myself and learn new skills. To improve effectiveness, I figure out how to import transaction models to system which saves me and my colleagues time in processing month end transactions and reports. This also gets me interested in exploring and learning data analysis, which I believe can help me support the team and business in a more effective way.
Being an accountant is more than just crunching numbers and completing financial statements. Accountants need to think strategically and develop solutions to complex problems with advanced tools. This means developing professional knowledge and skills continuously. It’s taking the time to understand the needs of the business, the risks and rewards, and how decisions can affect the future of the company. By doing so, I can provide financial guidance and insights needed to ensure the success of the business.
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