Happy March, Friends,
Well, that was a rush! I’m someone that can feel the drag of the midwinter SADs, but every four
years we’re blessed with a few weeks of joy during the winter doldrums, lit by the eternal flame of the Olympic and Paralympic torch. As long as I can remember, I’ve been absolutely enchanted by the Olympics, especially the winter games. The first games I remember remembering was in 1988, where I also remember catching my first glimpses of the iconic hyperbolic paraboloid atop the Calgary Saddledome, a structure that would later be a big inspiration for me abandoning my dreams of hockey or biathlon stardom (in my dreams I’d somehow manage to compete in both, like some kind of Nordic Bo Jackson) in favor of winning a gold medal in making sure things remain (essentially) immobile. I also remember managing to get my hands on an xacto knife, which I used to make tiny skiers out of strips of index cards, white glue and bent staple poles, whooshing down cotton ball hills, something far more up my alley, talent-wise. Now, as a father and knowing what I do about my own dexterity and luck with knives over the years, I get a little tense at that thought, but it was pretty par for the course. As one of six kids, having one of them sitting quietly at the countertop for hours on end was not something for a parent to interrupt for “safety” purposes.
I bring up this story because 1) opening with a random personal anecdote is de rigueur for these messages and 2) this is roughly the time of year where it has become equally customary for SEAONC to shine a light on what we are doing as a profession to make sure that ours is not just one that is loved by our practitioners, but one that loves them back. And by that, yes, I am referring in part to that much-maligned three letter acronym comprising dee, eee, and eye, you pick the order. Two controversial topics in consecutive president’s messages?! Yes, I’m a glutton for punishment, though to be fair, gender equity and equality were a big topic of discussion during and after these games, so it’s fresh on my mind.
I know what you’re thinking looking at my photo: “This guy’s a friggin’ poster child for DEI, right out of central casting!” But the truth is, I have and continue to be a tremendous beneficiary of these sorts of policies and practices (both as a recipient and practitioner), and that fact that I may not “look the part” to most of you is why I think it’s even more important to talk about… via a couple more anecdotes, of course.
Let’s start with the Dee. I spilled plenty of digital ink last month on that topic, so by this time you all know that I’m a fan of having a diverse workforce. In the early days of this administration, when it became clear that the aforementioned three letter acronym was going to be seen as a four letter word for anyone holding federal contracts, my firm held some townhall meetings to answer staff questions and affirm our commitment to maintaining the same practices that had helped us build the pretty diverse team we all loved. One of the things I was surprised to learn was that a number of our young engineers believed that they were the beneficiaries of some kind of corporate quota. They, in turn, were surprised to learn that no such quota existed. We had been actively working to cast a wide net to create a diverse pool of applicants for our positions and create an environment where they would feel welcomed and valued. But nobody was telling managers who to hire, we were simply making offers to the best candidates in that pool. Some years I might hire three women because they happened to be the best. The next year I might hire three men because they happened to be the best. We wound up with a group of excellent engineers who also happened to be pretty diverse without having to compromise anything. Structural engineering, especially forensics, is all about problem solving, and seeing problems from a slightly different angle can make all the difference between cracking the case and staying stumped. I sincerely believe that our team functions better because of its diversity, not in spite of it.
Now, for the Eee and Eye. That same kid who could work obsessively for hours making miniature paper skiers, models, drawings, or writing finally became a structural engineer, and he dove right in with the same passion and intensity, surrounded by colleagues who were similarly devoted to the craft. I loved it. But I also ignored those same colleagues’ warnings to take it down a notch, to leave those drawings at the office, to take a vacation once in a while. I worked hard, trained hard, played hard. For a long time, that worked and I had the stamina to keep it up and make up for bad habits I’d gotten away with along the way. Until I couldn’t. Some challenges shook up my personal life and I was too close to my expected tensile strength to accommodate much more. I didn’t collapse, but let’s say I was somewhere between the life safety and collapse prevention performance states. Unsure if I could be feasibly repaired and put back into service without significant downtime, I initially blamed the profession for my lack of resilience. I was seriously considering some offers to leave the industry when I happened to sit at a SEAONC dinner meeting with two energetic young members by the names of N. Tse and R. McClure. I had a couple glasses of wine and vented. They invited me to join a new group they’d formed called the Structural Engineering Engagement and Equity Committee, that was working on a survey to understand some of the factors that were leading engineers to leave the profession at a similar point in their careers. I wasn’t alone.
I didn’t stay involved with SE3 for long; I realized I needed to take a step back from SEAONC, dial it back a bit at the office, and give myself some space to reset and find my motivation again. My work was hard and probably had room to implement some of the lessons that SE3 was sharing, but I was equally to blame by not looking after myself. I spoke to my manager about my struggles, and he was understanding and accommodating, trusting me (a trust I had earned) to be an effective employee while having the flexibility to get my personal life back in order. I eventually changed jobs to something that was a better fit for my career goals and personal needs at that point in my life, but I didn’t leave the profession. Instead, inspired to try to be a voice for other early-career professionals, I joined the SEAONC Board and… well, you know how things ended up. All that to say that this straight, white, cis-gender, male, natural-born citizen probably wouldn’t be your SEAONC President if it were not for our SE3 Committee and the equitable “special treatment” I was given at a time when I needed a hand up instead of a kick in the pants.
Juggling work at this point in my career, other extracurriculars, parenthood, more unexpected life changes, and SEAONC leadership over the last couple of years has been a lot to handle, to say the least, and I’ve found myself struggling at times and dropping balls. I’m blessed to have a boss that recently scheduled a 3PM meeting on a Friday to tell me to pack up and go start my weekend early with my family. To me, having the sort of culture where managers say “how can I help, and what do you need,” rather than “what’s your problem?,” whether it’s a veteran or our newest hire, is DEI in action.
Somewhere along the way, benign words like diversity, equity, equality, and inclusion came to be associated by many with more polarizing things like quotas, affirmative action, mandatory trainings, performative celebrations, special treatment, and that’s distracted from the real message. DEI isn’t about quotas or forcing people to make a version of their company logo with a rainbow palette. It doesn’t have to cost you a dime, require special consultants, or compromise on technical excellence. Diversity can be as simple as considering different schools, degrees, or life experiences when you’re seeking new hires to find that diamond in the rough that other firms overlooked. It’s a competitive advantage. “Equity and inclusion” at its core, is just being excellent to each other (to coin a phrase) and living the golden (or platinum) rule. Most people are going to need some kind of special consideration sometime in their career. Maybe it’s being a new parent, a caretaker for a family member, rehabbing from an injury, or maybe it’s a life circumstance you don’t quite understand. Would you rather take some early morning meetings for a few weeks to help accommodate, knowing that you’ve got a loyal employee who’ll have your back when your turn comes, or go through the process of hiring and onboarding someone new? An office where people are comfortable being their authentic selves and know they are supported both technically and personally is an environment where good engineering work gets done. You don’t have to do these things if you don’t want to, but morality and politics aside, this stuff is just good business.
I hope to see you at our March Meeting, where we’ll have a great interactive workshop regarding the business case for gender equity. I’m particularly excited, because we’re trying a new format with multiple in-person hubs located all around the Bay Area to try to meet our members where they’re at. Not quite enthusiastic about everything you just read or feeling like SEAONC isn’t making you feel included? Email me or, even better, come join me at an office hours soon and let’s talk.
Citius, Altius, Fortius – Communiter!