Meet Kirsty
In honour of Women in Construction Week – meet Kirsty, Senior Quantity Surveyor and National President of the National Association of Women in Construction NZ!
Kirsty has worked in the construction industry since 2004 and came to New Zealand in 2014 to help with the Christchurch rebuild. She says one of the things she loves most about the industry is the sense of achievement that comes from seeing a project completed.
Every day is different. I enjoy being on site, working with subcontractors and clients, and building relationships. When a project is finished you can look back and say, ‘I helped build that.’
Kirsty says visibility and retention remain key issues for women in the sector.
When I started, there were very few women in roles like quantity surveying. It’s improving, but we still need to see more women in leadership positions across the industry.
Looking ahead, Kirsty hopes the industry continues to evolve.
I want a young woman entering construction today to see female project directors, commercial managers, site managers and board chairs as normal. You can’t be what you can’t see. And most importantly, I want her to stay, because when women stay in construction, the whole industry benefits.
