While women make up just over 10 percent of the construction industry, more than 86 percent can be found in office-based positions. From making sure folks are getting paid to keeping the wheels turning, these women fill a variety of rolls that support Manson nationwide.
Mindy Zaragoza, Payroll Manager
Q: How long have you been with Manson?
A: 26 years
Q: Given that construction is such a male-dominated industry, what brought you to it?
A: I was looking for a job and it became a career.
Q: Explain your role and your day-to-day
A: As payroll manager, I manage the entire payroll department. I oversee the Non-Union and Union payroll, make tax payment, union reports, retirement accounts, etc.
Q: What about your work inspires you?
A: I love the people I work with. Also, Manson does extraordinary things like moving orca whales, building massive bridges, or beach nourishment for hurricane-ravaged coast lines.
Q:What do you see in your future in the construction industry?
A: The sky is the limit.
Karissa Poitras, Executive Assistant
Q: How long have you been with Manson?
A: 7 years
Q: Given that construction is such a male-dominated industry, what brought you to it?
A: I previously worked at an oil refinery, but I got bored. I thought what Manson does was interesting and I liked the beach life.
Q: Explain your role and your day-to-day
A: I work with Basic Safe, our safety incident program, reviewing new incidents company wide, preparing agendas for safety meetings, and managing training records in the Manson Learning System.
Q: What about your work inspires you?
A: I really like the family environment. I work well with others and enjoy the people I get to work with here.
Q: What has been your biggest challenge of being a woman working in construction?
A: I have noticed more women over the years, which is nice. I work with a lot of older men, but I haven’t had any negative experiences.
Shannon Dempsey, Executive Assistant
Q: How long have you been with Manson?
A: 9 Years
Q: Given that construction is such a male-dominated industry, what brought you to it?
A: Actually I was referred by Rachel Odell who was in the Marketing Department at the time. She had said how much she loved it also, and that made we want to work at Manson.
Q: Explain your role and your day-to-day
A: My primary role to support the estimating staff with bids, and the executive staff with their needs. I help with any “rip and read” bid that doesn’t require a full technical proposal. I complete bid forms, manage bid documents and amendments, and make sure everyone has all the information they need. She is the main contact for Manson bonds and also responsible for gathering surety documents.
Q: What about your work inspires you?
A: I am comfortable here. I know my job and the people and that makes it easy to support them. I feel very stable in my role here.
Q:What do you see in your future in the construction industry?
A: I see even more stability for myself. I really enjoy the industry and feel it’s the most grounded group of people I’ve ever worked with.
Q: What has been your biggest challenge of being a woman working in construction?
A: Balancing family and work life
Melanie Routt, Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS) Specialist
Q: How long have you been with Manson?
A: 5 years
Q: Given that construction is such a male-dominated industry, what brought you to it?
A: My previous job was with an environmental engineering/construction group. I started out as the receptionist and moved my way to project administration. I spent some time at Joint Base Lewis McCord (JBLM), in Lakewood, WA, assisting in the onboarding of the construction crew building the new sewer plant. I learned a lot about the timing intricacies of building a structure from the foundation up. I loved getting to know the crew and their families. I really enjoyed seeing the day to day and the progress that was made when I would make trips to the field site. When I started looking for a new job, Manson stuck out as something familiar, but also a new challenge – Marine Construction rather than land. When I interviewed, Manson was working on Pier 57 where the Seattle Great Wheel is located. I knew it was a company I would enjoy because I’m a boardwalk kind of gal.
Q: Explain your role and your day-to-day
A: I’m the Human Resources Information Systems Specialist. I work on the back side of HR now. Building and providing reports to maintain good standing with federal agencies. I assist with navigating the best data to provide to leadership and managers for their day to day needs. The onboarding information employees fill out goes into multiple systems, and I’m one of the key players that provides an analysis of that data.
Q: What about your work inspires you?
A: Getting to know the intricacies of different databases and how to use it for the betterment of Manson. When I can get lost in coding and building reports, I am absolutely happy. I know the reports I build can help identify areas of new growth and moving Manson forward.
Q:What do you see in your future in the construction industry?
A: Hard to say. I don’t know what the future will hold, but I’m excited to continue integrating our different systems to communicate effectively. These systems will trickle down so everyone with boots on the ground can do their administrative takes swifter and continue getting the main project job done.
Q: What has been your biggest challenge of being a woman working in construction?
A: Feeling disconnected from the field or an intruder? When I introduce myself, I work for a marine construction company, I have received weird looks. Because “woman” doesn’t automatically equal construction work. I quickly explain I am on the Human Resources team, and it smooths out the conflict in the other person’s mind. I may not be out in the trenches and you aren’t feeling my day to day work first hand, but I’m doing my part to ensure reporting to federal agencies continues so we can maintain a good standing when we go to bid a job.
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