a
level playing field By Mifi Purvis
Gail Powley wanted to ensure the engineering profession
“T
retained female engineers— so she led an initiative to make that happen.
Demetri Giannitsios
28 U OF A ENGINEER FALL 2014
hey say that paper makes good partnerships,” says Gail Powley. “Well, the same is true of policy.” Powley (Chemical ’84) is settled in over coffee at the Faculty Club on the U of A campus. The sun has just burst through a light summer rain and she’s talking about the measures she and her colleagues have taken to keep more women working in the engineering profession. Her youthful looks and energy belie her 30 years as an engineer. Powley, vice-president of corporate development at Willowglen Systems, has a reputation as an adept manager, an expert at helping technology companies grow. Her work includes industrial automation, SCADA and flow computer solutions. “I wanted to make a difference,” she says of her career choice. “That’s what engineers do.” It turns out that making a difference is a thing for her. In this case, she’s referring to a policy developed by the Women in APEGA committee designed to help engineering firms retain talented employees, but it was chiefly aimed at ensuring female engineers have the support they need from employers during and following maternity leaves. The idea is to encourage women who have worked hard to become engineers, and whom companies have invested in, to stay in the profession. The numbers are gradually changing, but Powley graduated into a field in which 90 per cent of her young colleagues were men. It was the mid-1980s, and women were making gains in professions traditionally held by men. “Oh well,” she thought. “Engineering will take care of itself—the profession will catch up.”