- Women of NATE Chairwoman Andy Lee Introduction
- WON Profiles: Alicia Titus
- Where will you find the Women of NATE?
- Upcoming Events
- Recent Event Highlights
- Featured Article - Meet the New Way of Female Builders
Release:
September 2, 2020
Women of NATE Today Newsletter
Volume 2, Issue 8
Good Day Women of NATE!
I love this time of year. Back-to-school time always feels like a new beginning to me, a time for reinvention, for change, for collaboration. This year is bringing its’ own set of challenges, especially for women. When times get tough, very often it is the women who pick up the extra responsibilities with work, family, helping out those in need and making things better.
After many conversations with peers in the industry this month, I have noticed a common refrain. We are stressed. There are cracks. Extra pressures have been put on women’s careers during the pandemic, expectations of being the one responsible for all things outside of the office, leading to pulling back on advancement at work, or our jobs entirely.
While the impact of this time may be challenging, I think that there is an opportunity for all of us. When things are going along without misfortune, we can become passive about what makes us feel alive. We get up, go to work, come home, take care of everyone, and handle multiple responsibilities while placing one foot in front of the other. Instead, I challenge us to look at the glaring cracks we are experiencing.
When we get through this, and we will, what do we want? This is the perfect time to look at those signs. Take ownership. What type of career do we want? What type of life do we want outside of the office? And most importantly, how do we need help in attaining those goals? What can we delegate? It’s 2020, and I would like to see Superwoman retired. She’s exhausted. She would like to have as much time for friends, traveling, hiking, taking classes, running races, or seeing a movie by herself on a random Sunday morning, as she makes for work and home. Ok, full disclosure, that’s my list, what is yours?
To help in this endeavor, please join us for the FREE webinar, “WON Empowering Women Today”, on Monday, September 21, from 2:00-4:00 p.m. CDT. Our two esteemed speakers, T-Ann Pierce, Cognitive Behavioral Therapist and Life Coach of T-Ann Pierce Coaching, and Leticia Latino-van Splunteren, CEO of Neptuno USA, will be looking at both sides of this discussion. You won’t want to miss it. Please register at https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/6191798985626696720.
Andy Page Lee is Vice President of Lee Antenna & Line Service, Inc, in Springtown, PA and Chairwoman of Women of NATE Committee. She can be reached at ALee@LeeAntenna.com.
Won Profile: Alicia Titus
Alicia Titus is the President and majority owner of Meridian Blue Construction, which she co-founded in 2013. Alicia is responsible for the overall leadership and strategic planning for the company. She focuses on establishing long and short-term goals and overseeing the complete operation of the company.
Alicia is a licensed attorney in the State of Minnesota. She also serves as General Counsel for MN Adult and Teen Challenge (MnTC). MnTC is Minnesota’s largest residential alcohol and drug recovery program. Alicia is responsible for advising the President on various issues, managing the organizations legal matters and litigation, and examining and drafting contracts. She has been with MnTC since 2007.
Alicia actively serves as the Secretary of the Board of Directors for the Minnesota State Wireless Association (MNSWA). She is also an active member of NATE participating on the Women of NATE (WON) Committee and Trade Show Committee.
Tell us something about yourself that would surprise us:
What once was a comic book “hobby” has become more of an obsession. Elektra and Wonder Woman are my top two picks.
Three words to best describe you.
I think this depends on who you ask! I would say: smart, relentless, and to-the-point (I realize this might be cheating on the three-word limit, oops!).
What advice would you give to recent new hires?
Show up every day on time (or early), be flexible because in this industry things change rapidly, and if you don’t know what you should be doing and your supervisor is busy – just start by picking up trash and throwing it away. In this industry, you will go as far as your work ethic takes you. The harder you work, the farther you will go.
What aspect of your role do you enjoy the most?
Helping people realize their potential and learning new things every day.
What does true leadership mean to you?
I took a Servant Leadership training course at MnTC. It really revolutionized the way I approach leadership. Servant leaders turn the traditional leadership model upside down. This puts the employees at the very top and the leaders on the bottom. Leaders in this model possess a “serve-first” mindset. We focus on empowering, uplifting and helping develop the people who work for us. By doing this we help our employees unlock their potential and find a sense of purpose within our organization. I can tell you from experience it does a number of things including increase performance, productivity, and especially buy-in, which helps to promote workplace engagement and results in less turnover. I knew from the outset that I wanted our company culture to be different than traditional company culture. I also knew that in order for that to happen it would start with my approach to leadership.
Finish this sentence. On Sunday mornings, you can usually find me...
at brunch! I love everything about brunch. It makes 'adulting' worth it.
Do you have any skills or talents that most people don't know about?
I am a classically trained pianist and vocalist. I started playing the piano at age 4 and even majored in music for a year in college (before I realized I needed to have a job that would pay my bills after college).
What do you always want to try and never did?
RVing. My husband and I camped in a tent for one night before we threw in the towel and checked into the Sheraton. There was bugs and dirt and sleeping on the ground is about as much fun as it sounds. That was not a great experience. I would still love to take an extended road trip throughout the lower 48 and doing it in a (luxury) RV seems like it might be a good time. Still, I am not thrilled about the bathroom situation and dealing with the “black water”.
What does a typical day look like for you?
Before or after CV-19?! LOL – is anything “typical” anymore? I try to be up by 5 a.m. I start by asking Google what is on my calendar and what the weather is going to be. Then I spend at least one hour on myself, which always involves coffee and then some type of devotional or podcast. By 7 a.m. I am fully caffeinated, and I spend the first hour of my day reading and responding to emails. The rest of my day is usually some combination of meetings, reading, analyzing, decision-making and responding to emails. After leaving the office, I love cooking dinner with my husband and spending time with our dogs. If we are not working on a home improvement project, I typically read after dinner. Oh, and I almost always manage to squeeze in the Joe Rogan podcast!
What is the greatest challenge you have had to overcome in your life thus far?
If you had asked me this question seven years ago, I would have said passing the bar exam, but then I started a business. Running a business is a minefield of daily challenges. It is both rewarding and incredibly exhausting.
What is your favorite meal?
There are three ways to my heart – make me a taco, bring me a taco or be a taco!
What's a goal you have for yourself that you want to accomplish in the next year?
I love to read, but with my busy lifestyle I was not taking enough time to do it consistently. In 2019, I came across a podcast called ‘Books of Titans.’ The podcaster challenged himself to read one book per week. At first this sounded like a losing goal to me – I thought that there was no way I would have time for it. But when he explained that he was a slow to moderate reader and that it typically takes him 8-12 hours to read one book and that on average people spend 4 hours per day watching TV, I knew I could do it. So far, I am on the right trajectory! I plan on keeping this goal every year from here on out.
Where will you find the Women of NATE?
Take Women of NATE with you!
Are you traveling for work or taking a leisure vacation? Take a creative photo holding a Women of NATE (WON) logo in front of a landmark that lets us know where you are.
Women of NATE ventures to the Monte Carlo Casino, officially named Casino de Monte-Carlo, is a gambling and entertainment complex located in Monaco.
Women of NATE travels to Monaco. Monaco is a sovereign city-state, country, and microstate on the French Riviera in Western Europe. It is bordered by France to the north, east and west, and by the Mediterranean Sea to the south.
Over the weekend Women of NATE Committee Member Marianna Kramarikova went to see the tallest sand dune in Europe – Dune of Pilat in France (per Google it is about 360 feet tall.).
Submit your photos along with your name and location to nikki@natehome.com for a chance to be showcased in an upcoming Newsletter or social media post.
Upcoming Events
September 6-12 is National Suicide Prevention week. We can all help prevent suicide. Simple acts of support can make a real difference to someone going through a difficult time. Check in with your inner circle this month. Simply reaching out can remind someone that they are not alone. This is the lifeline number if you, or someone you know, is in trouble.
To stay apprised of recent event updates and to view the most comprehensive events listing visit the NATE WIN (Wireless Industry Network) website at www.natewin.org.
Recent Event Highlights
Women of NATE
in Action
Meet the New Wave of Female Builders
How women in construction are responding to sexism and isolation by creating a community — and a future — for themselves
(Double-exposure photo of builder Angela Cacace by Madeline Gray)
Angela Cacace’s career began with a magazine contest. The D.C. barber had moved to North Carolina for her husband’s job and so successfully remodeled their kitchen that she won a contest in This Old House. Encouraged by the story’s editor to pursue her contracting dreams, she enrolled in a local building program. “I was so nervous on the first day of class,” she recalls, “but six of the 12 students were women — I was blown away. I remember an instant feeling of confidence that we had a place here.”
She posted on Facebook about the number of women in the class, adding, as a joke, #MoveOverBob. “Every woman I knew fell in love with it,” says Cacace, 32, explaining that the hashtag was inspired by cartoon character Bob the Builder and isn’t about replacing men but simply asking them to make a little room. (In the interest of gender equality, Bob’s creators have since given his sidekick Wendy a promotion to electrical engineer and business partner.) That hashtag would grow into a Facebook page, a website and an Instagram handle featuring photos of women doing demo, laying tile and wielding sledgehammers.
“There’s a demand in the field, and women want to fill the void. Normalizing it seemed like a fun thing to do,” Cacace says. “Young people need resources at their fingertips, and #MoveOverBob has been a great way to find other women. It can get lonely being a woman in construction.”
In those first years, “I was doing a lot of free work … while keeping my barbering job,” she recalls. “Even though I’d taken the classes, I lacked the confidence in pursuing paid work. That was the attitude of a lot of the women in the class. The guys were there to get into the workforce, and the women were there to learn with no expectation of actually getting a job when we were done.”
It took two phone calls, Cacace says, one from a male classmate and friend and the other from her teacher, “both telling me that they believed in my abilities and I needed to stop working for free, quit barbering and get to work in construction,” she says, before she made contracting her full-time focus. “I still find myself doing work for free — part of that comes from my customer service background of always wanting to go the extra mile — but, unfortunately, the other part of it is a lack of confidence in my place in the industry. Like, to make up for being a woman I have to give a little more.”
Angela Cacace: Before she launched her company, A. Marie Design Build, in 2017, Cacace balanced free contracting work with her barbering job. (Madeline Gray for The Washington Post)
And even though she’s owned her own company, A. Marie Design Build, for a couple of years now (she launched it in 2017), she still faces pro departments at big-box stores trying to direct her to customer service before she can even tell them she has a pro account. “It can be deflating to be excited about starting the workday, pulling up with my truck to pick up lumber for a job and then having to deal with condescension. But I’ve gotten better about shrugging it off.”
Inspiring women to connect has helped her, too. About a year after launching her firm, Cacace became a mother. “I’d have to leave the job site to find a random parking lot and sit in my truck, covered in dust, and pump. It was pretty awkward,” she says, laughing at the ridiculousness of it all. “But I remember looking at my phone, seeing women using #MoveOverBob and thinking, Yay!” In that moment, Cacace realized she had created a place where her equally isolated colleagues could connect. “They were telling each other not to be discouraged, and even asking each other for work clothing recommendations. It was awesome.”
Women still make up only about 9 percent of the construction industry, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, so the isolation is real. It’s a vulnerability that has also led to intimidation and harassment, even assault. But a new wave of female contractors is creating a community for themselves to fight the loneliness that comes along with being a small minority in the field. They are also hoping to inspire women coming up behind them, to build a support system they don’t feel they had. “There’s an older generation of kick-ass women,” says Cacace, “but there’s a generation gap in construction because of a lack of encouragement.”
To read the full article click the following link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/magazine/wp/2019/09/16/feature/meet-the-new-wave-of-female-builders/
Author: Maile Pingel is a design historian. She is co-author of Paige Rense’s Architectural Digest: Autobiography of a Magazine, 1920-2010 (Rizzoli 2018) and currently writes for a number of publications, including Luxe Interiors + Design and The Washington Post Magazine.
Article Appeared: The Washington Post
Published - SEPTEMBER 16, 2019
