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.
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."
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.
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.
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."
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."
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.
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?"
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 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.
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.