Construcciones Yamaro: Celebrating the winners of the 2024 Women in Industry Awards

Two months have passed since the 2024 Women in Industry Awards, yet the excitement remains. Now is the perfect time to reflect on the extraordinary achievements and inspiring stories of this year’s winners.

2024 Winners

Safety Advocacy Award – Kathleen Kelly, McConnell Dowell

Kathleen Kelly is deeply passionate about crafting and implementing health, safety and wellbeing programs. Currently, she is a significant contributor to the strong safety culture that has been established for the New Bridgewater Bridge project in Tasmania. Throughout her 22-year career in the construction industry, Kelly has earned multiple accolades from projects and organisations alike for her fervent dedication to cultivating a culture of safety excellence. “I love my job,” Kelly said on the night. “I am a winner because of the support that I get from all my team members.”

Rising Star of the Year – Kate Leone, UGL

Kate Leone is passionate about engineering for change and being at the forefront of technical innovation. She currently works for UGL as a communications engineer on the M6 Stage 1 project in Sydney. Leone is an advocate for increasing global access to technology and diversity in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and has ambitions to lead her own projects with a complete gender balance. She is also a teacher and mentor with active involvement with various industry organisations and associations.

Business Development Success of the Year – Sandra Robinson, United Rentals

Sandra Robinson has served as a business development manager within the Kennards Major Projects division for nearly a year, having been promoted to this position within her first year at Kennards. In her first six months in this role, she achieved 252 per cent of her sales target and increased project management team numbers by 200 per cent as a result of winning additional projects.

Industry Advocacy Award – Steph Gee, CM & SM Gee Electrical

Steph Gee is a shining example of grassroots advocacy in the national electrotechnology sector. As a fully licensed electrician and business owner, she actively promotes gender equality and empowerment on jobsites. Gee holds influential positions on national industry boards and government training and apprenticeship committees, ensuring that the voices of her sector are heard and represented at the highest levels of decision-making within both the electrotechnology sector and the national energy market.

Mentor of the Year – Kirstin Reblin, Opal Packaging

Kirstin Reblin, general manager of transformation at Opal Packaging (Opal), is a dedicated advocate for fostering female talent across all areas, levels and sites at Opal. Since 2020, she has served as a National Association of Women in Operations (NAWO) Mentor, leading the expansion of mentoring programs and spearheading Opal’s NAWO Mentoring initiative. Her commitment to diversity is exemplified by her creation of ‘Thinking Diversity: Women at Opal’ in September 2022, which has grown to over 450 members.

Excellence in Construction – Sinead Redmond, GeelongPort

Sinead Redmond, GeelongPort’s head of infrastructure delivery, has been a qualified engineer and project manager in the construction industry for over 18 years. She holds leadership positions in several industry organisations and led the establishment of The National Association of Women In Construction’s first regional chapter. Her advocacy and volunteering in the industry have led to changes in policies and the development of mentoring and programs.

Excellence in Engineering – Allyson Woodford, APA Group

Allyson Woodford, general manager of engineering and planning at APA Group, leads more than 355 people to support APA Group’s $22 billion worth of critical energy infrastructure across Australia. She has held leadership positions within the Institution of Chemical Engineers for over 25 years, supports universities as an industry representative for course content and presentation, and creates award-winning in-house leadership training programs for emerging engineering leaders. “Having women up here, to talk to young women, to tell them that engineering is a really great way to get involved in changing the future, is something that I’m really proud of,” said Woodford as she accepted her award.

Excellence in Energy – Vesna Olles, BOC South Pacific

Vesna Olles is the director for clean energy and strategy at BOC South Pacific. She has championed BOC South Pacific’s efforts in clean energy, and advocated for the company’s investment in nation-building projects that will support Australia’s transition to net-zero emissions and pave the way for the emerging hydrogen industry. Olles is a strong advocate for women in the workplace and actively mentors her female colleagues.

Excellence in Transport – Anne Modderno, Swietelsky

Anne Modderno, the first female managing director of any Swietelsky international subsidiary, has led significant progress since her appointment in May 2023. She spearheaded the development of the company’s Sustainability Strategy, reflecting her dedication to driving positive social and environmental impact. Beyond her professional achievements, Modderno advocates for inclusivity and diversity within the transport sector, promoting initiatives to increase women’s participation and close the gender pay gap.

Excellence in Manufacturing – Derelle Mitchell, Health Focus Manufacturing

Managing director Derelle Mitchell founded Health Focus Manufacturing (HFM) in November 2011 after purchasing the assets of a cosmetic manufacturing company that was closing. Starting with just three staff, a basic commercial property and a small office space converted into a lab, Mitchell has built HFM into a $10 million business on the cusp of launching a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility.

Excellence in Mining – Sinead Booth, Fortescue

Sinead Booth epitomises excellence and innovation as the head of decarbonisation delivery at Fortescue. She has spearheaded transformative initiatives, particularly in sustainability and decarbonisation. Booth’s commitment to women’s development extends beyond her professional endeavours, demonstrated by her leadership at the Gomo Foundation, dedicated to educating disadvantaged women in Africa. In her role, she has established pioneering programs aimed at bridging the gender gap in the mining sector.

Woman of the Year – Derelle Mitchell, Health Focus Manufacturing

Chosen from the winners of the other award categories, this year’s award went to Excellence in Manufacturing winner, Derelle Mitchell. During her acceptance speech, Mitchell spoke about her passion for her job: “I wake up every day at four o’clock in the morning and I just love it and I love the people I work with – if it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be standing here right now.”

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The Inside Construction team congratulates all winners and finalists of the 2024 Women in Industry Awards on their outstanding achievements, leadership and commitment to their sectors.

The post Celebrating the winners of the 2024 Women in Industry Awards appeared first on Inside Construction.

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Construcciones Yamaro, by Armando Iachini