Turning engineering vision into world-changing action
Hard hat on, eyes wide, Rebecca marveled as a child at the mines that her father took her to visit in remote parts of Australia and Papua New Guinea - and this sense of engineering fascination (“Wow, look what we can build!”) has never left her. But what drew her to program management was her determination to bring teams and cultures together to turn wide-eyed engineering vision into action, and action into sustainable outcomes. From a nationwide gas program in Ghana, to storm resiliency for New York City, to urban housing and city infrastructure development in Libya, Rebecca is the “connector”, creating dialogues across generations and geographies, helping clients do business better, and channeling process in the only direction that matters – towards the Program goal.
Learn from other disciplines
Rebecca’s career has been enriched by her experience in non-engineering sectors, too, from which she has learnt much about the value of positive change. “I have worked with some very traditional organizations - hospitals, the Bar Council, English Heritage,” she says, “and my mantra has always been ‘how do you do that differently and better? How do you keep people engaged and change a culture to deliver lasting benefits?’”
That, she explains, is about empowering people at all levels and across all borders to succeed. Resolved to gain a better understanding of this dynamic, she turned to learnings from outside of engineering, completing a Master’s degree in International Relations. Quite simply, as she puts it, “I wanted to work across the world, solving problems!”
Clarify, unite, inspire
Problem-solving is at the heart of all engineering, so Rebecca is certainly in her element. But how does she actually go about managing complex, major, global programs to anticipate and minimize problems – not just solve them?
For her, it’s mainly about stripping away complexity in language and terminology, finding common ground between disciplines, and – as she is also an avid runner – focusing on short sprints that, combined, inspire teams to take the program further, faster, even in the face of adversity. “It’s how you keep your spirits up,” she smiles, “when you’re managing a huge program in a remote part of Africa, working with contractors and liaising with HQ in the Middle East, and the power goes off!”