2023 Women Who Build Summit program book

Wednesday, April 26, 2023 1:00 - 7:00pm

1:00pm Preconference Workshops

3:30pm John W. Olver Design Building

An Architectural Tour of the UMass Amherst Campus

5:00pm Welcome Reception Amherst Room

Thursday, April 27, 2023 8:30am - 4:15pm

7:45am Registration & Continental Breakfast

8:30am Welcome Remarks Nancy Greenwald The Construction Institute

Carolina Cudemus-Jones Smith College

8:45am Opening Panel Discussion

10:00am Morning Breakout Sessions

See session descriptions for room assignments

1 1:20am Late Morning Panel Discussion

12:30pm Lunch

Champions of Change Awards

Remarks by Laura Cruickshank, University of Connecticut

1:45pm Keynote

Introduction by Avishan Montazer, The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company

2:30pm Group Workshop

4:00pm Closing Remarks & Raffle Drawing

WELCOME TO THE CONSTRUCTION INSTITUTE

We are the people you work with every day – owners and facility managers, architects and engineers, contractors and subcontractors, project managers, consultants, manufacturers and distributors, governmental agencies, lawyers, accountants, and many other industry-related colleagues. As a non-profit, nonpartisan organization, the Construction Institute has been providing vision, leadership, problem solving skills and unique, trade-specific education for over 45 years.

Wednesday, April 26 1:00 - 3:00pm

Design, Build, and Operate Your Network

From new to seasoned professionals, we can all benefit from building new connections as they can be critical for knowledge sharing, learning, continuous improvement, and allyship. For recent graduates, networking may be daunting, and we might not know where to start. For experienced employees, we are a bit more risk averse and see more routine decisions and contacts in our work and communication. This breakout session focuses on actionable networking strategies that women can implement to level up their careers. Attendees from all experience levels can then begin the Summit with specific tools to utilize through the program and beyond to feel more confident, powerful, and fearless in their construction careers.

Brigitte Perera, Exponent

Room 163 (1st Floor Campus Center)

Tips for Mitigating Disputes and Disruptions through Contracts

Over the past three years, the construction industry has been rocked by numerous unforeseen market forces, resulting in an unique confluence of challenges, from supply chain disruptions to labor shortages. Many owners and contractors were left out-ofpocket, as these matters were not appropriately addressed in their contracts. We will identify five issues we anticipate will continue to affect construction projects during 2023 and beyond, and discuss how these issues can be managed in construction contracts. Issues include: supply chain disruptions, commodity price fluctuations, labor shortages, rising borrowing costs, and increased use of technology and cybersecurity. This session is designed for everyone from owners, to owners reps, contractors and subcontractors, project managers, and construction lawyers.

Robyn Blumberg, Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP

Stephanie Garraway, Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP

Room 162 (1st Floor Campus Center)

Opening Panel Discussion

8:45 - 9:55am

Resilient and Sustainable - Women of Green

Major efforts across the country and in the industry are dealing with the mitigation of climate change. Meet the Women of Green - the decision-makers and innovators who are at the forefront of climate change in our industry. They will discuss their current and future initiatives and concerns and how these initiatives will affect how we work and what we do in the future.

Sandy Beauregard, Competitive Energy Services

Abbe Bjorklund, Dartmouth College

Janine Helwig, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Monica Kachru, Eversource

Martha Larson, RMF Engineering, Moderator Breakout Sessions 10:00 - 11:15pm

What Doesn’t Beat Us Makes Us Stronger

The breakout session speakers will share personal experiences and triumphs in overcoming adversity in their lives and careers, and provide concrete lessons learned and take-aways that attendees can apply to their own lives and careers. Such adversity will include career changes, work stresses, management difficulties, work-lifefamily balance, and health challenges, to name a few. Whether you are a Nietzsche scholar or a Kelly Clarkson fan, this session will offer something for everyone who has had to face and overcome some adversity in order to find their strength.

Marianne Monte, Shawmut Design and Construction

Christina Oneglia Rossi, O&G Industries, Inc.

Wendy Venoit, Cozen O’Connor

Sponsored by

Room 163 ( 1st Floor Campus Center )

CONFERENCE DESCRIPTIONS

Heeding the Warning Signs – Strategies for Identifying and Managing a Troubled Project

All projects start off with the goal of completing on time and on budget, with minimal issues along the way. But many companies and projects are not prepared with strategies or protocols when things do not go as smoothly as planned. In this breakout session, three women specializing in construction dispute resolution will assist the audience in identifying red flags to look for when a project may be in trouble. While recognizing that some disputes are unavoidable, the speakers will provide lessons learned and best practices that may be implemented to reduce risk when trouble arises, such as proper communication and use of available protocols/tools. This session will be valuable to professionals in all stages of their careers and in all facets of a construction project.

Sara Bryant, Murtha Cullina LLP

Emily Federico, Ankura

Colleen Lenz, Ankura

Sponsored by

Room 162 ( 1st Floor Campus Center )

Procuring for Success: How E-Procurement Can Drive Project Cost Reduction and ESG Best Practices

During this interactive breakout session, we will discuss the sustainable procurement of construction materials and a framework for sustainable materials management in construction projects, plus dive into the digital transformation of supply chains in construction, namely the impact and use of e-procurement on the purchasing function (bid, order, track) in the construction industry.

Lynne Cooper, el sea llc

Martha Delaney, Neu-Ion Inc

April Moss, DigiBuild

Thomas Smith, AIT Group

Room 165 ( 1st Floor Campus Center )

CONFERENCE DESCRIPTIONS

Raising the Standard for Sustainable Building: Living Building Challenge

Shawmut Design and Construction will present a case study of the first Living Building Challenge (LBC) project completed in Connecticut, and how they are applying lessons learned on an academic construction project also seeking LBC certification. LBC is a certification program that defines the most advanced measure of sustainability. Presented by two Shawmut Project Management professionals and the firm’s Sustainability Manager, this breakout session will demonstrate how Shawmut uses experience gained on past projects to support clients’ goals in the sustainability space.

Jan Koch, Shawmut Design and Construction

Elizabeth Murphy, Shawmut Design and Construction

Kelly O’Brien, Shawmut Design and Construction

Room 174 (1st Floor Campus Center)

Sponsored by

Late Morning Panel Discussion

11:20am - 12:30pm

Robots, AI and Blockchain: Where is Technology Taking Us?

What technologies are coming down the road? Which ones are already on the street? And which are in the backyard? Join our panel of tech experts for a lively discussion of the technologies that are changing how the industry works.

Megan Berry, Hilti

Lindsey Peterson Black, Hinckley Allen, Moderator

Lynne Cooper, el sea llc

Nirva Fereshetian, CBT Architects

Kayleigh Houde, Buro Happold

Lunch & Champions of Change Awards 12:30 - 1:45pm

2023 Champions of Change Awardees

Remarks by Laura Cruickshank, University of Connecticut

Lisa Clauson Director of Strategic Partnerships North Atlantic States Carpenters Labor Management Program, Central and Western MA

Since 2016, Lisa Clauson has worked for the Carpenters Union recruiting women and people of color to the field, working to expand diversity in the construction industry, both within the workforce and with MBEs and WBEs. She helps facilitate the Policy Group on Tradeswomen’s Issues, focused on increasing not only the supply of women in the industry through recruiting more women and gender non-conforming people to the industry, but also the demand through persuading owners to incorporate construction diversity plans into their projects. Clauson also works for the Carpenters Union on policy campaigns, research, and business development.

Francis (Frank) X. Hayes President BOND Building Construction

As the President of BOND Building Construction, Inc., Frank Hayes commands over 30 years of expertise in the construction industry. His exceptional leadership, management skills, and track record of successful project delivery have earned him an enviable reputation in the industry. Hayes is passionate about gender diversity and has been an active proponent of initiatives promoting women’s inclusion and advancement in construction. His efforts have led to the recruitment, training, and mentoring of women in various roles, creating a more inclusive and diverse work environment that has resulted in improved collaboration and innovation for the company.

CONFERENCE DESCRIPTIONS

Keynote Address 1:45 - 2:30pm

How to Become an Agent of Change While Rocking and Rollin’ It

June Millington, Female Guitarist & Trailblazer

Introduction by Avishan Montazer, The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company

A pioneer for women in Rock, guitarist singer-songwriter/record producer June Millington was born and raised in the Philippines to a mixed-race couple just after WWII. She moved with her family to Sacramento, CA at thirteen years old where she and her sister Jean, outsiders from birth, managed to succeed in forming the first all-girl band to be signed to a major record label (Warners), release entire albums, tour internationally and serve notice that women could rock as well and as hard as men.

Despite, or perhaps because of, the prejudice and obstacles

Millington has met along the way, she has been a trailblazer for women in music. Among her many accomplishments, Millington co-founded the Institute for the Musical Arts, a nonprofit with a mission to support women and girls in the field of music and musicrelated business, and wrote her autobiography (“Land of a Thousand Bridges: Island Girl in a Rock in Roll World”). Millington will share the lessons learned and the tools gathered during her lifelong journey.

CONFERENCE DESCRIPTIONS

Group Workshop 2:30 - 4:00pm

Powerful Questions: For Collaborating, Connecting, and Building Confidence

Questions are a valuable – and under-utilized – tool to help leaders at all levels think and communicate more clearly and effectively. Neuroscience teaches us that open-ended questions engage parts of our brain that help us think more effectively. We can coach ourselves and others with powerful questions to help us think more confidently and positively, as we clarify the kind of leader we want to be and the impression we want to leave on others. We can also use questions with a group we’re working with, to think creatively and to explore a topic in a more collaborative way.

In this interactive workshop, participants will:

• Understand the difference between closed and open questions, and how certain open-ended questions engage parts of our brain that help us think more effectively

• Learn and practice a question-generating activity and tool with others to think more expansively and creatively about a topic

• Build their self-confidence and leadership awareness by participating in a peer coaching activity to practice asking and answering powerful questions

• Leave with a mini-action plan of questions they are excited to use at work and at home.

Deb Elbaum, Deb Elbaum Coaching LLC

Women Who Build

We believe a diverse and inclusive workforce promotes innovative ideas in an ever-changing environment.

Eversource is proud to support the Construction Institute and their 2023 Women Who Build Summit. Thank you for the inspiration and leadership you so generously share.

BRG IS A PROUD SPONSOR OF

BRG’s leading construction and government contracts experts and advisors bring a range of experience, methodologies, and approaches, harnessing the firm’s collective capabilities to provide the inspired insights and practical strategies needed to stay ahead of what’s next.

Our commitment to women’s leadership initiatives is key to providing the diversity of perspectives today’s challenges require.

June Millington, “one of the hottest female guitarists in the industry” (Guitar Player Magazine), has been making music since she was a child playing ukulele in her native Philippines. Having moved from Manila to California in the early sixties, she and her sister, bassist Jean, turned in their folk guitars for electric guitar and bass and formed a succession of all-girl bands. By 1969 they were in Hollywood with their band Fanny, one of the first all-women’s rock bands to be signed to a major label (Reprise). Through five successful albums and extensive touring, Fanny served notice that women could do more than simply sing, they could write and play passionate rock ‘n roll. As David Bowie said of the group in an interview with Rolling Stone: “They were one of the finest... rock bands of their time... They were extraordinary: They wrote everything... They are as important as anyone else who’s ever been, ever....” (RS, January 2000).

In 1975 Millington played on Cris Wiliamson’s “The Changer and the Changed,” launching her involvement in the genre of women’s music, and leading to being a co-founder and Artistic Director of the Institute for the Musical Arts [IMA], a non-profit organization for women and girls. IMA [www.ima.org] has been hosting Rock ‘n Roll Girls Camps each summer since 2002, growning into an internationally known teaching, performing and recording facility supporting women in music. The founding board included activist/writer Angela Davis and acclaimed engineer/producer Roma Baran. Millington released her autobiography “Land of a Thousand Bridges: Island Girl in a Rock ‘n Roll World” in 2015; Bobbi Jo Hart’s documentary, “Fanny: The Right to Rock” was released in 2021. Millington’s latest album, Snapshots was just released via IMA on her label Fabulous Records (all proceeds support programming, https://www.ima.org/snapshots/).

JUNE MILLINGTON FEMALE GUITARIST & TRAILBLAZER

SANDY BEAUREGARD DIRECTOR OF SUSTAINABILITY SERVICES COMPETITIVE ENERGY

SERVICES

Sandy Beauregard is the Director of Sustainability Services at Competitive Energy Services, where she assists clients with sustainability consulting such as greenhouse gas accounting, climate action planning, renewable energy procurement, and energy master planning. Prior to joining CES, Beauregard worked as a sustainability and energy efficiency professional in higher education. She received her master’s degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and has bachelor’s degrees in engineering and environmental policy from Dartmouth College and Colby College.

MEGAN BERRY DIGITAL CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANT HILTI

Megan Berry began her career at Hilti in 2019 as a Building Construction Account Manager for Middlesex and Worcester County. Her focus was on building high level, long term relationships with General Contractors across her territory, to improve their workflow and implement sustainable and profitable solutions. She is currently the Digital Construction Consultant for New England, where she has full responsibility for sales development of Hilti’s relevant BIM to Field Portfolio of solutions which include advanced layout, high end detection, robotics and relevant software & services. She enjoys supporting her sales force by conducting product demonstrations, trainings and meeting customers’ needs and expectations.

ABBE BJORKLUND DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING AND UTILITIES DARTMOUTH COLLEGE

Abbe Bjorklund is Dartmouth College’s Director of Engineering and Utilities, where she is responsible for campus utility system planning, engineering, and operations; engineering of new and existing facilities; and campus energy management. She is passionate about planning, designing and operating facilities to reduce carbon emissions. Bjorklund is leading the planning and engineering efforts at Dartmouth to cut carbon emissions by over 80 percent through a combination of energy efficiency improvements, steam to low temperature hot water heating conversions, and low carbon heating and cooling generation technologies such as geothermal heat pump and solar thermal systems.

Lindsey Peterson Black is an Associate with the Construction & Public Contracts Group of Hinckley Allen. Black’s practice focuses on all aspects of the construction industry. She has represented general contractors, construction managers, subcontractors, project owners, and suppliers in a wide range of construction-related matters. Black routinely advises clients on contract drafting and negotiation, payment issues, liens, construction and design defect claims, delay claims, litigation, arbitration, and dispute resolution. She counsels clients on best practices for avoiding litigation and minimizing risk and represents clients in federal and state court, arbitration and alternative dispute resolution.

LINDSEY PETERSON BLACK ASSOCIATE, CONSTRUCTION & PUBLIC CONTRACTS GROUP HINCKLEY ALLEN

ROBYN BLUMBERG SENIOR ASSOCIATE, CONSTRUCTION & INFRASTRUCTURE GROUPS CASSELS BROCK & BLACKWELL LLP

Robyn Blumberg is a Senior Associate in the Construction & Infrastructure Groups at Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP. Blumberg assists construction industry clients navigating the civil litigation and dispute resolution process. She advises owners, contractors, and subcontractors on commercial, institutional and residential construction issues, including bidding and tendering, deficiencies, delay, termination, construction liens, breach of contract, and breach of trust. She has regularly appeared on construction lien and other matters before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.

SARA BRYANT PARTNER MURTHA CULLINA LLP

Sara Bryant is a partner in the Boston office of the law firm Murtha Cullina LLP. She represents construction managers, owners and other construction industry clients in the trial and resolution of construction disputes on public and private projects. She handles matters involving allegations of breach of contract, defective work, mechanic’s liens and Chapter 93A violations. She also drafts and negotiates construction contracts and secures and defends lien and bond rights for her clients. Bryant is the former President and founding member of the Boston Chapter of the Professional Women in Construction and currently serves as Office Managing Partner of Murtha Cullina’s Boston office.

MEET THE SPEAKERS

LYNNE COOPER FOUNDER EL SEA LLC

Lynne Cooper is Founder of el sea llc (a Project Lifecycle Consulting Group), Co-Founder of Weldchain LLC (a digital quality and verifiable credentialling application for hygienic welding in the field), is on the team at Hanbury Architects (a leader in science and technology architecture) and is an advisor to DigiBuild Software (a supply chain procurement solution founded before COVID). After beginning her career in Richmond, Virginia she joined a team working for a general contracting company in Maryland and now has worked as an Owner’s Representative, serving nationwide from Washington State to Massachusetts to Florida. Cooper is an advocate for workforce development, technology and change management strategy.

MARTHA DELANEY SENIOR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER NEU-ION

Martha Delaney is Senior Business Development Manager with NeuIon. She started her career in commercial construction in Washington DC. She spent several years working for a builder and has transitioned between IT and construction during her career. Delaney believes that technology and construction are a perfect match. Over the past few years, she has seen significant progress with the integration of technology in the construction industry. She believes in the importance of collaboration and has used technology to host virtual meetings and online collaborations to expedite progress in construction projects. Delaney worked in the IT industry, collaborating with Microsoft, Oracle and others in developing technology education programs.

DEB ELBAUM EXECUTIVE COACH & SPEAKER DEB ELBAUM COACHING LLC

Deb Elbaum, MD, PCC, is an executive coach and speaker who has been guiding people to think and communicate confidently and calmly for more than 15 years. She believes that challenges can be managed more easily and effectively with increased awareness and a robust leadership toolkit, and she helps leaders at all levels use these to quickly increase their impact and presence. Audiences appreciate Elbaum’s interactive speaking style and ability to ground personal growth in neuroscience. She hosts the podcast In the Right Direction and lives with her family in the Boston area.

EMILY FEDERICO SENIOR MANAGING DIRECTOR ANKURA

Emily Federico is a Senior Managing Director in Ankura’s Construction Disputes & Advisory Group, based out of the Fairfield, CT office. She is a certified Planning and Scheduling Professional (PSP). Her over 20 years of experience in the construction industry includes schedule development and monitoring from a technical and risk management perspective as well as the preparation and analysis of various schedule delay, acceleration, loss of productivity, and cost overrun claims on construction projects in the public and private sectors. Federico has provided expert testimony in the areas of schedule delay and damages. She is Past President of the Connecticut section of AACE International.

MEET THE SPEAKERS

NIRVA FERESHETIAN CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER CBT ARCHITECTS

Nirva Fereshetian is Chief Information Officer at CBT Architects, a Boston based design firm providing services nationally and internationally in architecture, interior design, and urban design. She is responsible for aligning business technology strategy to meet primary business objectives. Fereshetian specializes in leading and managing technology solutions in creative design environments, technology adoption and change management, plus Results driven Information Systems Executive delivering Practice Services (BIM, AR, VR, Automation), Knowledge Services (BIM, Collaboration, Corporate Knowledge) and IT Services (Infrastructure Management, Vendor Relations and Application Deployment).

STEPHANIE GARRAWAY SENIOR ASSOCIATE, CONSTRUCTION & INFRASTRUCTURE GROUPS CASSELS BROCK & BLACKWELL LLP

Stephanie Garraway is a Senior Associate in the Construction & Infrastructure Groups at Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP. Garraway works daily with clients to advise on all aspects and stages of Canadian and International infrastructure development and construction projects, including pre-design, project structure, procurement, and project delivery models, identifying the best contractual model to suit their project. She has experience with an endless number of standard and bespoke forms of contract, ranging from AIA, CCDC, and FIDIC documents, through to FEED and EPC(M), and continues to work collaboratively on either side of the negotiating table to get projects “shovel-ready.”

Interstate would like to acknowledge and thank the amazing women in our company for their remarkable contributions to the construction industry.

At Interstate, we encourage women of all backgrounds to consider the rewarding career opportunities available to them in the electrical trade. For more information on how you can become part of the Interstate team, visit us at www.iesc1.com.

855.500.4372 | www.iesc1.com

JANINE HELWIG DIRECTOR OF UTILITIES, DEPARTMENT OF FACILITIES MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Janine Helwig is the Director of Utilities in the Department of Facilities at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She oversees MIT’s Central Utilities Plant, which consists of a 44 MW combined heat and power plant, and is responsible for the efficient operation and management of all campus electricity, heating, and cooling resources and distribution systems. Helwig leads her team on sustainable planning efforts to address MIT’s future energy needs while also meeting MIT’s commitment to reducing carbon. She has over 17 years of experience in facilities management, with over 10 years in higher education. She is a Certified Energy Manager (CEM), and a Certified Educational Facilities Professional (CEFP).

KAYLEIGH HOUDE COMPUTATIONAL COMMUNITY LEADER BURO HAPPOLD

Kayleigh Houde is the global Computational Community Leader for Buro Happold, where she leads their open source code development project, BHoM. With a background in engineering, she works at the intersection of transdisciplinary design, sustainability and computation. Houde is a founding member and co-chair of Carbon Leadership Forum’s MEP 2040 Challenge, an ASHRAE Building Decarbonization Task Force member, and teaches Parametric Life Cycle Assessment at the University of Pennsylvania.

MONICA KACHRU DIRECTOR OF OFFSHORE WIND ENERGY EVERSOURCE

Monica Kachru brings over 20 years of experience in the energy supply, transmission and clean technology area of the energy business in North America and overseas. Most recently, as the Director of Offshore Wind Energy her role has covered areas ranging from business development to project execution. She is passionate about bringing sustainable and cost effective solutions to long standing problems of energy insecurity and reliability. Kachru is a graduate of MIT’s Sloan School of Management, and a member of Sloan Women in Management, which promotes the advancement of women to leadership positions across all sectors.

JAN KOCH PROJECT MANAGER SHAWMUT DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

Jan Koch started with Shawmut Design and Construction’s CM skills training program in 2010 after earning her Bachelor’s & Master’s in Architecture from Roger Williams University. As a Project Manager, she takes pride in not only delivering complex projects on-time and under budget, but also delighting clients, mentoring and rallying team members to overcome project challenges. She acted as LBC Project Manager on the recently completed world headquarters for HMTX Industries, which is on track to become the first Living Building Challenge Petal Certified project in the State of Connecticut. Koch is currently working on a private academic project which is seeking a full Living Building Challenge certification.

MARTHA LARSON DIRECTOR OF SUSTAINABILITY RMF ENGINEERING

Martha Larson, CEM, LEED AP, is the Director of Sustainability at RMF Engineering where she supports the firm’s broad portfolio of campus district energy decarbonization projects. Prior to joining RMF in June 2022, Larson was the Manager of Campus Energy and Sustainability at Carleton College where she led a decade-long carbon reduction campaign that reduced the college’s total carbon footprint by nearly 70%. Her work at Carleton included publication of the college’s first Climate Action Plan, installation and operation of the 1.68 MW Kracum wind turbine, and a full campus district energy transition from steam heating to low temperature hot water tied to a geothermal heat pump and three geothermal bore fields.

COLLEEN LENZ SENIOR DIRECTOR ANKURA

Colleen Lenz is a Senior Director in Ankura’s Construction Disputes and Advisory group with more than nine years of experience in construction investigations for dispute resolution and construction advisory. Throughout her career, Lenz has assisted clients involved in construction disputes by performing detailed analyses of complex issues to identify the root-cause of project management failure on projects around the world. Her expertise includes analyzing schedule delays for construction disputes, performing in-depth issue analyses through project document review/investigation, and assessing project damages. Lenz also advises clients during the pre-development and construction stage of ongoing projects.

MEET THE SPEAKERS

MARIANNE MONTE CHIEF PEOPLE AND ADMINISTRATION OFFICER SHAWMUT DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

Marianne Monte is the Chief People and Administration Officer at Shawmut Design and Construction, a $1.3 billion construction management firm. She oversees the HR, Marketing, Legal, and IT departments, developing strategies and processes for the company’s core operations. Monte advises executive leadership on business strategies, utilizing her executive coaching, talent management, and business partner skills to foster an inclusive work environment. Her efforts contributed to Shawmut’s recognition as a Best Workplace by Fortune Magazine. Monte was named a Diversity Champion at the 2022 Women of Influence awards by GlobeSt Real Estate Forum and received the 2017 Providence Business News C-Suite Award.

APRIL MOSS CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER & CO-FOUNDER DIGIBUILD

April Moss, Chief Operating Officer & Co-Founder of DigiBuild, is a market and retail strategy expert with more than 20 years of experience developing sales teams with some of the largest global companies, including Procter & Gamble and Starbucks. She also worked for the Construction Specification Institute in Washington D.C., fueling her interest in real estate development. Moss watched her father struggle as a sub-contractor. Those struggles contributed to her father ended his own life. Construction has 4-5x more suicides than any other industry. Her passion is to make sure that as DigiBuild works to improve the construction process that it helps to relieve the burden on construction people and their families.

ELIZABETH MURPHY SUSTAINABILITY MANAGER SHAWMUT DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

As Shawmut’s Sustainability Manager, Elizabeth Murphy serves as a resource for clients and internal teams throughout all project phases to help meet the sustainability goals and requirements. She has an M.S. in Sustainable Building Systems from the Northeastern University College of Engineering as well as a B.A. in Architecture from Wellesley College, is a member of the Associated General Contractors of Massachusetts Sustainability Committee and has been with Shawmut since 2014.

KELLY O’BRIEN SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER SHAWMUT DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

Kelly O’Brien started with Shawmut in 2014 to perform larger work and to grow her level of experience. As a Senior Project Manager, she always delivers world-class client service to clients, while delivering on Shawmut’s core values with full team collaboration. O’Brien holds a B.A. in Pre-Architecture from University of Connecticut at Storrs and is a past recipient of the Professional Women in Construction (PWC) - Connecticut Chapter, Woman of Accomplishment Award. She is currently working on a private academic project which is seeking a full Living Building Challenge certification, and has completed other sustainable LEED renovation projects.

CHRISTINA ONEGLIA ROSSI VICE PRESIDENT OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT O&G INDUSTRIES, INC.

Christina Oneglia Rossi is the Vice President of Business Development for O&G Industries, Inc.’s Building Group. She began her career as a Project Engineer in the field, dabbled with BIM and Clash Detection, and served the company as a Project Manager in the Special Projects Group. In her current role, Oneglia Rossi is responsible for driving the strategic direction of the Building Group, along with input from the Building Group Executive Team, to set goals and achieve pursuits. She enjoys making new connections and strives to gain new business opportunities for O&G. Oneglia Rossi has been a member of the Hartford Hospital Auxiliary Board, doing “good works for Hartford Hospital” and has recently been involved with Dignity Grows.

BRIGITTE PERERA CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANT EXPONENT

Brigitte Perera is a Construction Consultant at Exponent with building, utility, and infrastructure experience. Her experience in construction management includes project management, site supervision, quality management, scheduling, safety, estimating, and procurement. Perera has assisted project teams in achieving substantial completion for contracts totaling over $1B in New England. After pivoting to consulting, she has worked in project advisory, risk management, and dispute resolution. Networking is a powerful tool that has positively influenced Perera’s career and she looks forward to sharing strategies that will help women feel more confident in the construction industry.

THOMAS SMITH PRESIDENT AIT GROUP

Thomas Smith has over 25 years of experience working in international business, construction and developing industries. He was raised in Chicago, with a unique upbringing shaped by his parents’ contrasting perspectives, which he greatly respects. While his father was an entrepreneur who owned a commercial development company and was involved in homebuilding, his mother was pro-union and politically active. Smith grew up with a focus on trades, construction, and development. He spent 25 years working internationally, eventually becoming the president of the North American Division. He then bought American Import Tile (AIT), a Chicago-based company, focusing on domestically manufactured flooring products.

Wendy Venoit is a Shareholder with Cozen O’Connor in Boston, MA. Her practice focuses on the litigation and arbitration of domestic and international construction disputes, including mediation and arbitration before the AAA, JAMS, LCIA, ICDR and ICC. She is an experienced trial attorney, having handled dozens of construction disputes, some involving claims in excess of $1 billion. Most recently, she obtained an arbitration award in excess of $237 million for her client in an international arbitration arising out of the wrongful termination of an EPC Contract. Venoit serves as an arbitrator and is a member of numberous panel of neutrals and is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

WENDY VENOIT SHAREHOLDER COZEN O’CONNOR

Proud to Support the Women Who Build Summit

PLANNING COMMITTEE

The Construction Institute appreciates the time and dedication of this year’s Planning Committee & Advisory Committee.

Carolina Cudemus, Program Chair Smith College

Andee Hidalgo Spearhead Construction

Nicole Joyce Univeristy of Massachesetts Amherst

Dawn Monde Red Thread

Nancy Greenwald Construction Institute

ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Denise Berger AECOM

Kathyann Cowles KC Architects

Laura Cruickshank University of Connecticut

Zoraida Ferguson Pratt & Whitney

Petina Killiany Arcadis

Anamaria Popescu Berkeley Research Group

COLLABORATING SPONSORS

MEDIA SPONSOR

ANNUAL SPONSORS