After working in construction for over two decades, Mary Catherine has seen it all. She discusses why it's a good time to join the industry, lesser-known roles available and what to consider when switching jobs.
“When I started, if you were interested in what you were doing and willing to learn, then everybody gave you a fair shot. They didn’t care who you were, where you came from, or anything else.”Mary Catherine resides in Donegal and works as a portfolio manager at Glenveagh Properties, a position she’s worked her way up to through hard work and years of experience.
“The managing director in my first job was really good to me. He always liked to set challenges for all of us to make sure that we were always using our brains, always growing and really understanding“He encouraged me to always ask why I was doing a task and, if there was a better way to do it, not be afraid to speak up and suggest that. And, he never treated me differently for being a girl.”
Much of her work is about providing the business with the ability to make decisions, giving each team involved the information they need to move forward with their job. Then, when that’s done, they hand that project over to construction, who physically start on-site. “I haven’t been on-site full-time in quite a while and I miss it. Since I started with Glenveagh, I’ve been primarily office-based. Working on site is great craic but they can be intense environments too. In both environments, you’ve got deadlines and handovers to meet, and, most of the time, you’re problem-solving.”
“I always say: don’t discount a role solely because of its title. You need to really look at what the job description is, because, in my experience, job titles usually never match the work that you are doing.”