Eliza - Senior Project Manager
Eliza started as an intern in 2005 and gained a full-time position in June, 2006.
"I love the employee programs that our company offers".
As a participant in the Aspire program, Eliza was able to meet and work with people across the Lendlease business. "It was by far one of the rewarding experiences I have had at the company," she said. She also said that the training she received through the group was "extremely helpful" for her career.
From two years to ten
Eliza's first project as lead superintendent was an office renovation, she described as small but complicated.
"I had only been in the industry for two years, so it was a considerable challenge for me. With excellent mentorship, I was able to complete the job as promised to our client. Watching our client move in was one of my proudest moments," she said.
Eliza recently celebrated twelve years with Lendlease and is currently working on the Columbia Manahattanville Project, overseeing interior trades for the Jerome L. Greene Science Center. "The combination of building a difficult lab and a Renzo Piano building is both a challenging and exciting opportunity," she said.
Eliza was recently featured on Construction Dive, an online Construction news site, as part of their 'Young Professionals in Construction series'.
She said the construction industry is "ripe for innovation".
"We see now that with things like 3D modeling, using special software on project sites. But continuing to push that is really important. Innovate or you're going to lose out. Having younger people enter the industry and encouraging them to come in is important because they're the ones who know all the new technology. And continuing to push diversity is important."
Commenting on her experience as a woman in the industry, Eliza said, "I am sure it's different, but when I'm in the day-to-day throes of doing my job and in the trenches, I don't notice it. I'm here to do my job, and I work really hard at it... I work very hard to do a good job and set the right tone for women in the industry.
"Even in the 12 years I've been in the industry, there are significantly more women in the field being project managers and superintendents than there were 12 years ago. And I think most companies now are more committed to having more women."