Aisling has worked with Mercury in locations such as Ireland, Germany, the UK, Netherlands and Sweden, working across multiple projects including data centres and a semiconductor plant. Aisling is focused on leading digital construction on Mercury\u2019s sites with a strong emphasis on integrating information gathered in the field to measure and monitor projects.<\/p>\n
You can read the full interview below.<\/em><\/p>\n How did you get into the construction industry, and can you tell us a little bit more about your career journey to date?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n If I\u2019m honest, it was an accident! <\/span>Originally,<\/span> I was training to be a teacher when I realised it wasn\u2019t for me. I took on an admin role in Mercury<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>viewing it as a \u2018stop gap\u2019 job<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>with the view it would be a\u00a0short term\u00a0role,\u00a0<\/span>while I figured out what I wanted to do\u00a0and have been here ever since.\u00a0I\u00a0have been\u00a0lucky enough to work with some fantastic people over the years who took the time and patience to teach me things and\u00a0I am now the Business Unit Quality Manager for Mercury\u2019s data centre business unit.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Early on in my time at Mercury, I decided I wanted to do a master\u2019s degree in business which Mercury\u00a0<\/span>sponsored. It\u00a0was a big investment to make in me,\u00a0and\u00a0I was fortunate\u00a0and grateful\u00a0to be given lots of opportunities to grow.\u00a0 Over the years, I have spent time working in\u00a0<\/span>and across different departments and<\/span>\u00a0quality assurance teams learning more about the business and the industry. I\u2019ve\u00a0also\u00a0been lucky enough to travel\u00a0with Mercury\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>have<\/span>\u00a0spent time working in Sweden, the Netherlands,\u00a0<\/span>the<\/span>\u00a0UK\u00a0and Germany. I feel this\u00a0has\u00a0<\/span>made\u00a0<\/span>helped me to become<\/span> more well-rounded in my role as I learnt so much about other cultures and observed other ways of working across jurisdictions<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You\u2019ve travelled and worked in lots of different countries across Europe in your current role, what are the main differences you\u2019ve experienced when it comes to approaching construction jobs?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n There\u00a0<\/span>can be<\/span>\u00a0substantial differences to the way construction projects operate across Europe \u2013 if you drive for four and a half hours from Amsterdam to Frankfurt,\u00a0<\/span>the regulatio<\/span>ns<\/span>\u00a0can differ\u00a0significantly\u00a0<\/span>and this affects how you execute the project from start t<\/span>o finish. <\/span>This can be<\/span> f<\/span>rom how you deal with local authorities to subcontractor partners or <\/span>the contract structure.<\/span>\u00a0It\u2019s been\u00a0fascinating\u00a0and rewarding\u00a0to learn about these\u00a0diverse\u00a0ways of working.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n How do you think we can attract more females into the industry and what changes have you seen over the years when it comes to women in construction?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Years ago, I could have walked into client and project meetings and been the only woman in the room but\u00a0it\u2019s great to see\u00a0that\u00a0<\/span>this <\/span>is<\/span>\u00a0changing<\/span>\u00a0and quickly<\/span>. When I look around our data centre business unit in Mercury, I see\u00a0many\u00a0more\u00a0<\/span>women\u00a0<\/span>in a variety of roles\u00a0demonstrating\u00a0the industry\u00a0is\u00a0diversifying and attracting more female talent.\u00a0Recently, I\u2019ve been involved in reviewing applications for our graduate\u00a0programme,\u00a0and we\u2019ve seen some\u00a0really strong\u00a0CVs from young women wanting to break into construction which\u00a0I think\u00a0is\u00a0fantastic. There\u2019s still a long way to go but I feel\u00a0confident\u00a0that in a few years the gender balance\u00a0in construction\u00a0will be much more equal.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Traditionally, the construction industry is perceived as being very male-dominated and perhaps a hard industry for women to work in as a result. I used to find the culture seemed very \u2018blunt\u2019 and confrontational; I do think women and men are built differently when it comes to the way they adapt to work cultures.\u00a0 However, I think that this<\/span>\u00a0too<\/span>\u00a0is changing. The industry is becoming a lot more professional, whereas in the past we were a bit further behind other industries.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The industry is open to many different types of people and personalities now \u2013 it\u2019s not the traditional aggressive industry full of confrontation that many people may view it as.\u00a0There are\u00a0opportunities for all kinds of different roles. I believe that\u00a0technology and innovation are helping to scope out new roles and\u00a0opportunities.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n My\u00a0advice to any woman thinking about pursuing a career in construction is to give it a chance. Don\u2019t\u00a0be put off by anything you may have heard previously.\u00a0The classic approach to construction is gone\u00a0<\/span>with\u00a0<\/span>the industry<\/span> embracing\u00a0new ideas and ways of working\u00a0which will bring important benefits\u00a0<\/span>for\u00a0<\/span>all.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n How has technology helped you in your role?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Technology has provided me with a greater overview of projects and a level of transparency that I didn\u2019t previously have. From a quality perspective, being able to deal with any issues upfront when <\/span>they<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>occur is so valuable. On our construction sites now, our field teams have tablets to take photos so we have almost instant access to relevant data. This provides us improved insight and a sense of control which means obstacles can be easily resolved.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n What\u2019s the one piece of technology that you couldn\u2019t live without?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n In my personal life, I\u2019d say my phone \u2013 I don\u2019t think anyone can live without\u00a0their phone!\u00a0From a professional point of view,\u00a0BIM 360<\/span>\u00a0and the data and information which all our teams input<\/span>\u00a0daily<\/span>\u00a0help<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0me do my job\u00a0<\/span>more\u00a0<\/span>efficiently every day.\u00a0<\/span>every day<\/span>\u00a0\u2013 I\u2019d be lost without it.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n We support women in construction. While women currently make up only 5.5% of the construction workforce, Mercury is leading the way in making strides to both attract a high quality and diverse team and help to make the construction industry more female-friendly.<\/p>\n Like Mercury on\u00a0Facebook.<\/a><\/p>\n Follow us on\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>,\u00a0Twitter<\/a>,\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram.<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Having spent the past ten years of her career with Mercury, Aisling Goff hasn’t looked back since joining our team as a QA Administrator in 2011. Now working as a Quality Assurance Manager for Mercury’s Enterprise Data Centres Business Unit, Aisling recently reflected upon her considerable career progression following her ‚accidental‘ beginnings into a career […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":6783,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,34],"class_list":["post-6775","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mercury-engineering","category-design-quality-innovation"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"Aisling](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Aisling-Goff-headshot-750x1000.jpg\")
WOMEN IN CONSTRUCTION<\/a><\/h3>\n