Episode 66: Are Women in Construction a Fad or the Future? With Rita Brown, NAWIC President

The construction industry is evolving, and organizations like the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) are helping shape its future. In this episode of Building with Metal, we sit down with Rita Brown the President of NAWIC to discuss their 70-year legacy of supporting construction professionals through education, leadership development, networking, and workforce advocacy. Whether you're a contractor, architect, manufacturer, engineer, or simply interested in the future of construction, this conversation offers valuable insights into building stronger teams, developing the next generation of leaders, and creating a more resilient industry.

  • 39 min

Episode 66 - Are Women in Construction a Fad or the Future? With Rita Brown, NAWIC

The Building with Metal Podcast – Presented by McElroy Metal

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Notable Quotes

Rita Brown: "Run your own race. You are not in competition with anyone else other than your own expectations."

Rita Brown: "We're 51% of workers out there in all levels, yet we only have maybe 11% of the jobs in the construction industry. Five and 6% if you're talking about boots on the ground in the trades."

Rita Brown: "Anytime we have a technological jump, the ones who benefit the most are the ones who've been shut out of the industry, and this technology is something that women do excel at."

What You'll Learn

• Why a group of women in Texas founded NAWIC 71 years ago and what the organization does today
• The numbers behind the gap: women are 51% of the workforce but hold roughly 11% of construction jobs and only 5–6% of trades positions
• What NAWIC membership includes: 12,000 pages of online resources, webinars, certificates, a job portal, a member app, and more than 125 local chapters
• How construction majority training updates bystander training by focusing on the collective rather than putting one person in personal jeopardy
• Membership options for every career stage, from $25 student memberships to at-large membership for professionals far from a local chapter
• Why Rita Brown sees AI as an opportunity for women in construction, drawing on her own company's early adoption of BIM
• What companies that retain their people do differently and why Brown says retention will decide the winners of the next 50 years
• What's happening at the NAWIC Annual Conference in Reno, August 13–15: RED Talks, breakout sessions, a charitable bowling event, and $600,000 in scholarships

Key Timestamps

• [00:00] Cold open: what women do differently on construction teams and the best career advice Rita has given and received
• [03:30] Introducing Rita Brown and the story behind NAWIC, founded 71 years ago in Texas
• [05:30] Why join: the mission, the community, and the 51% versus 11% workforce gap
• [08:00] Education and training, including construction majority training, an update on bystander training
• [11:00] Mentorship and how programs vary across more than 125 chapters
• [13:00] The annual conference in Reno, August 13–15: the Giving Thursday bowling event, five charities, and $600,000 in scholarships
• [17:00] Career paths for women beyond the trades, from ownership to project management
• [19:30] AI in construction: why technological jumps favor those who've been shut out and lessons from early BIM adoption
• [22:00] Misconceptions about women's abilities, the push for more women in senior roles, and NAWIC's zero-tolerance stance on jobsite violence
• [28:00] Membership options, the Leadership Academy, retention and recruiting trends, and what to expect at the conference: RED Talks, the RED Zone, and the W Cafe

Mentioned Resources

• National Association of Women in Construction
• Contact Rita Brown: president@nawic.org
• NAWIC Annual Conference, Reno, Nevada, August 13–15
• NAWIC Leadership Academy
• McElroy Metal website
• Connect with host Kathi Miller on LinkedIn

Episode Deep Dive

Rita Brown has a quick answer when asked what women do differently on construction teams. "We are better listeners, so we get a better idea of holistically how the project is going or needs to go."

Brown is president of the National Association of Women in Construction, and she joined the Building with Metal podcast to talk with host Kathi Miller about the organization, the industry, and where both are headed.

What the National Association of Women in Construction Offers

NAWIC started 71 years ago in Texas, when a group of women wanted a place to gather and talk business in an industry that wasn't friendly to them. Today, it has over 6,000 members, more than 125 chapters across the country, and 12,000 pages of resources on its website. Members get webinars, certificates, formal training programs, a job portal, and access to professionals across the country through the organization's app.

Women Hold 11% of Construction Jobs

The case for all of it starts with one set of numbers. "We're 51% of workers out there in all levels, yet we only have maybe 11% of the jobs in the construction industry. Five and 6% if you're talking about boots on the ground in the trades," Brown said.

Miller, who has spent over 30 years in the industry, remembers being one of two women at her company and one of its first female outside sales representatives. Things have improved. Brown's response: don't get comfortable. "It has grown, no doubt it has grown. I'm just saying let's not pat ourselves on the back. We have a lot more work to do, so roll up our sleeves and require that we have the representation that we have earned."

Construction Majority Training and a Zero-Tolerance Stance

Some of that work is happening in training rooms. At its upcoming conference, NAWIC is running what Brown calls construction majority training, a rethink of bystander training. Most programs ask one person to speak up when they see something wrong, which puts that person in personal jeopardy. Brown's version starts from a different premise: the majority of people in construction want safe, respectful jobsites, so train to the power of that collective. It builds on Be That One Guy, the program Vicky O'Leary advocated through the Ironworkers.

The association also came out this year with a zero-tolerance position on jobsite and workspace violence. Brown says that stance matters because NAWIC has a seat at most of the important tables. "We can be that tip of the spear if we have the boldness, if we have the integrity and the intention to be of service to our industry."

Why AI Is an Opening for Women in Construction

On AI, Brown is direct. "Anytime we have a technological jump, the ones who benefit the most are the ones who've been shut out of the industry, and this technology is something that women do excel at." She has seen this before. Her own firm adopted BIM modeling early, when it was still taboo, and that foothold let a small company compete in an industry that hadn't always welcomed it.

Retention Is the Math

She's just as direct on retention. Construction is losing more workers than it's bringing in, and Brown believes the companies that solve retention will be the winners of the next 50 years, recession-proof because their best people stay and the best candidates keep knocking. What do those companies do? They realign the workday, listen, and accommodate where it gets them the performance they need. "That doesn't mean that you're giving anybody special treatment. That means you're recognizing that in order to get what you need, you need to do X, Y, and Z. To retain that talent. It's talent retention. That's the math."

When Miller reflected that she's been lucky to spend her career at a company where women get equal opportunities, Brown flipped it. "How lucky is your company that they recognize the value in more than half of the workforce out there? How forward are they?"

NAWIC Membership Options

For anyone considering membership, options run from $25 student memberships to at-large membership, which Brown recommends for anyone hours from a major metropolitan area. At-large members get the full online library, webinars, safety meetings that have drawn over 400 attendees, and a Leadership Academy focused on mapping out a career roadmap. Join at large, learn the lay of the land, then move to a chapter later at no additional fee.

The NAWIC Annual Conference in Reno

The annual conference runs August 13–15 in Reno and is open to non-members. Expect around 30 RED Talks, NAWIC's micro-learning answer to TED Talks, another 30 breakout sessions, a first-ever five-charity bowling event, an author cafe, and $600,000 in scholarships awarded through NAWIC's education and scholarship affiliates. Everyone is welcome, including men. As Brown puts it, the industry only works when all its factions pull together.

"We build America. That's what we do every single day, every single one of us," Brown said. "We need to remember that."

Find out more at nawic.org, or reach Rita Brown directly at president@nawic.org.

About McElroy Metal

McElroy Metal manufactures metal roofing and siding products for residential, commercial, agricultural, and industrial applications. Headquartered in Bossier City, Louisiana, with plants and service centers across the United States, McElroy supplies contractors, architects, designers, and building owners with metal panel systems, accessories, and the engineering expertise to use them well.