This month, we’re celebrating Women in Construction Week (March 6-12) with a blog series highlighting the value and ingenuity women bring to our member businesses. We’ll also feature careers and opportunities available to women interested in a rewarding, full-time job and being a part of the precast, prestressed concrete industry’s bright future.
PCI-MA: How do you describe your job to people?
Peterson: Helping people learn and grow. My many years at Tindall and the various positions held have provided me a good understanding of the precast/prestressed concrete industry, what Tindall does, how we do it, and who to go to for what. I enjoy connecting people with people and resources.
PCI-MA: How did your career journey lead you to your company?
Peterson: My entire career has been in concrete construction. While going to school for architectural and civil drafting and design, I knew steel or residential work weren’t in my future and big construction was. The first day out of school was my first day with Ceco Concrete Construction in Connecticut. After eight years of drafting and designing, being in the field full-time on a high-rise office building and on the Boston Harbor WWTP and returning to night school for civil engineering, I wanted to keep growing. I was dating my husband, who was with Ceco and living in Virginia, so as our relationship bloomed it was clear we would be in Virginia. That’s when I applied for a drafting position at Tindall knowing I really didn’t want to do that anymore. Seeing my experience, Greg Force, now President and CEO of Tindall, hired me to coordinate Tindall Virginia Division prison projects. This was a challenge I loved, and I think I was pretty good at. Now twenty-eight years later, having spent four years in engineering, sixteen in project management, spending time in the field (multiple projects full-time and out of state), then time with our quality management system, becoming a Certified Coach with Tindall’s Heart of Leadership Coaching Program, I’m now in HR and want to help others.
PCI-MA: What is one of the greatest challenges you’ve faced in our industry and how have you overcome it?
Peterson: One that stands out the most in my memory is after moving from the city in Massachusetts to the country in Virginia, leaving my family, friends, and job as I started with Tindall. Part of my training was to spend eight weeks in the field on a prison project, which turned out to be eight months. While getting to know Tindall and learning the differences between cast-in-place concrete (CIP) and precast/prestressed concrete construction, I was working with very seasoned men, from the GC, Tindall, and the erector from Texas—all of whom didn’t know what to make of me, and I can confidently say now were testing me to see what I was made of. It was challenging and rewarding. As for overcoming it, I put my boots on every day and went to work. Yes, I had some sleepless nights and uncomfortable meetings and a few heated moments on the site, but I kept at it.
PCI-MA: What do you enjoy most about your job?
Peterson: Two things: the people and the projects. My Tindall family is second to none; the precast/prestressed concrete industry—although too small—has cultivated some of my dearest friendships and put me in company with a group that’s like Cheers (I may be dating myself). I also have a tremendous network in the construction world. As for the projects, I feel very proud to travel throughout the Mid-Atlantic and see parking garages, warehouses, prisons, chip plants, pedestrian bridges, office buildings, air traffic control towers, indoor skydiving centers, and WWTPs and think, I was a part of that.
PCI-MA: Do you have a mentor or role model? If so, how does this person support you in your personal and professional growth?
Peterson: I don’t have a mentor. There have been different people throughout my career I’ve looked up to and specifically what attributes stood out to me, and I either try to mimic or use those within my style. I’ve also had managers, colleagues, and friends push me outside my comfort zone to discover what I’m capable of. For all of them, I’m forever thankful and hope they continue to push.
PCI-MA: What are your career and life aspirations and goals?
Peterson: To help others grow and succeed.
PCI-MA: What advice would you give a young woman entering the construction industry?
Peterson: Get involved. I had a past manager tell me and another manager he wanted us involved in the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI) and the American Subcontractor Association (ASA). When I started attending PCI Committee Days and Convention, it was to participate on various committees such as Financial/Risk Management, Erectors, and Sustainability. I later chaired the Financial/Risk Management Committee. Currently, I chair the Business Performance Council and a task group to write The Standard Practices for the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Industry. As a council chair, I also sit on the PCI Board of Directors.
We are a member of the American Subcontractor Association of Metro Washington (ASAMW), and I’m a board member of ASA National. I’ve served two consecutive sessions as a BOD member for ASAMW and then went through the executive chairs, and it was after that I joined National’s board. Next, I will be part of the Foundation of ASA.
I find myself offering this advice to coworkers lately, no matter what the gender. I was given a book from a good friend while having a tough time at work. When I saw the title I thought, this is one of those touchy-feely books, ugh. It’s called The Four Agreements, and after reading it, I typed up the agreements, matted them, hung them next to my desk, and read them daily.
The Four Agreements
- Be Impeccable with Your Word
- Don’t Take Anything Personally
- Don’t Make Assumptions
- Always Do Your Best
About Tindall Corporation
From modest beginnings as a manufacturer of concrete pipe to a major force in precast, prestressed concrete architectural and structural systems, precast modular systems, cell modules for corrections facilities, and utility structural systems, Tindall Corporation now supports its customers with six facilities in South Carolina, Virginia, Texas, Mississippi, and Georgia serving regional projects and the North American construction industry.
Producing high-quality, innovative precast solutions and complete project delivery of precast structures from concept to completion at every step of the construction process, Tindall leads the precast industry in innovation with unsurpassed solutions to complex project requirements through the design, manufacture, transport, and installation of high-performance precast concrete building components and systems.
Tindall’s in-house engineering, manufacturing, logistics, and on-site resources support both traditional and specialized construction project applications using precast concrete. They create specialized structures for the construction industry, serving end users in commercial, industrial, institutional, corrections, energy and power generation, parking, retail, wind power, and underground infrastructure markets.
Want to learn more about a career in precast? Check out our workforce Career Center for job descriptions, career paths, job listings, and other helpful resources.
