Greatness Podcast

Every once in a while you meet someone that is such a tremendous leader, so incredibly gifted and respected that you really sit up and take notice. That was the case when I met Gabrielle Trainor, Chair of the Construction Industry Culture Taskforce among many additional positions of leadership. Gabrielle joined the Greatness podcast to discuss the critical work of the Taskforce in reshaping the construction industry here in Australia to improve the wellbeing of our employees. I'm grateful to have the opportunity to serve on this taskforce with Gabrielle. I share her passion for the need for changes in our industry, globally, to make this industry even better than it is today.

I was listening to the radio here in Australia just after the last US presidential election, and the radio announcer asked "How do 70 million Americans think four more years of Trump is a good idea?". Regardless of your political viewpoint, Zoe Daniels' new book, Greetings from Trumpland: How an Unprecedented Presidency Changed Everything, gives incredible insight into answering this question given her time living in the US and covering the prior election and three years of the Trump administration for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). Zoe visited the Greatness podcast to share some of the highlights of what is a wonderful read. Her years of experience in Africa, Asia, Australia and the US traveling to remote locations and telling the stories of people's challenges give Zoe a unique perspective. While I work hard not to stray into politics, I felt her message should be heard. The inability to have civil discourse is not just a US challenge, it is a global challenge. 

How does a US general contractor achieve 35 female craft workers on their 140-person project team? Maja Rosenquist, Sr. VP with Mortenson, joined the Greatness podcast to talk about her company's "intentional strategy" to embrace diversity and inclusion in the construction industry and the successes they are experiencing as a result. I admire Maja as an incredible leader in our industry, and she discussed her vision of authentic leadership, grounded in "do the right thing".

I've loved spending most of my career in the engineer/construction/energy industry, and I had the good fortune of passing the Presidency of Continuum Advisory Group on to Kelcey Henderson, another woman in our industry that I greatly admire. Kelcey and I connected on the Greatness Podcast to reflect on the history of women in the industry, discuss where we are today (about 10% of the industry globally), and explore the bold moves being taken across the globe to attract more women to the industry.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of moving to Australia has been the exciting journey of meeting fabulous people who share my passion for making the world a better place. Karen Gately, Founder of Corporate Dojo and acclaimed author, shares that passion. Karen draws upon her marshal arts experience to help leaders on their journey of self-mastery and personal accountability. Karen joined the Greatness podcast to share insightful, practical tips for how leaders use the "mirror of truth" and personal courage to empower the human spirit of their follows. The results - outstanding business success.

For 35 years I've been a pioneering woman in manufacturing and construction, starting in 1986 as the first female operations manager in the US for Ralston Purina and later as one of the first female shareholders/managing directors for FMI. It's time for us to fix the diversity issue in construction, and I applaud NAWIC Australia - the National Association of Women in Construction - for their work in progressing their vision, "an equitable construction industry where women fully participate". The Chair of the Board, Kristine Scheul, joined the Greatness podcast to talk about the innovative strategies they are implementing to make this vision a reality. 

Creating transformational change in an industry is a massive undertaking, and I applaud the Construction Industry Institute, CII, and its leader, Stephen Mulva, for the role they have played in driving change in capital program delivery. We are the industry that "builds the world" but research shows that 41% of the cost of any construction project is waste. I had the great pleasure of working with Stephen back in 2017 to help create a Manifest for Change for the industry which provides the overarching vision for OS2, a research initiative to drive sweeping change. 

When I moved to Australia, I found it fascinating that the construction industry here is facing similar challenges to those faced in the US - lagging productivity gains, lack of trust and collaboration, and image challenges. Last year I was thrilled to meet Jon Davies, CEO of the Australian Constructors Association, a fellow champion of change who is leading the charge for shifts in the industry here in Australia. Jon joined the Greatness podcast to discuss global efforts to shift the construction industry, including the UK's Construction Playbook and the Construction Industry Culture Taskforce here in Australia, a group I was recently invited to join. As Jon says, "we all have a role to play". 

So thrilling to have Gabrielle Dolan on the Greatness podcast to discuss her latest book, Magnetic Stories. I have learned so much from Gabrielle about how to leverage stories to create connections, strengthen relationships, build brand, etc. Magnetic Stories focuses upon how to use brand storytelling to connect with customers and engage employees, and Gabrielle shares great tips for this on the podcast - enjoy!

Ethical behavior is not just the right thing to do, new research shows it's the profitable thing to do. Dr. Simon Longstaff of The Ethics Centre (www.ethics.org.au) joined the Greatness podcast to share his fascinating life journey, thoughts on how ethics is embedding in the day-to-day choices we make, and the new research study that demonstrates the concrete economic returns of ethical behavior to individuals, organization, and even societies. In fact, an increase in ethical behavior would add $45 billion to the Australian economy. Dr. Longstaff shares many, many practical tips for ethical behavior.